Dartmouth Field Hockey Wraps up Season at Cornell

HANOVER, N.H. – The Dartmouth (10-6, 3-3 Ivy) field hockey team takes to the road for its last game of the season as the Big Green travels to Cornell for a Saturday Ivy League matchup with the Big Red. The current crop of five Dartmouth seniors are looking for their first-ever win over Cornell.

Currently the Big Green holds a commanding lead in the series, going 20-10-1 since the teams first met in 1979. Dartmouth won the next five meetings before the Big Red snapped its losing streak in 1985 with a 1-0 victory. From there, the series was fairly even until 1998 when the Big Green began an eight-game winning-streak against the Big Red. Cornell ended Dartmouth's run in 2006 and has extended its winning streak to four games, its most consecutive wins in the series.

As the season is wrapping up, Dartmouth still packs a scoring punch, ranking third in the nation in scoring offense with an average of 3.8 goals per game. Most of the Big Green's offense is generated off penalty corners, as the squad ranks ninth in the country with 9.25 chances per game. The three players that make up their penalty corner unit all rank in the top 20 in points per game, led by striker Kelly Hood (Berlin, N.H.), who ranks fifth in the country in points (3.00) and third overall in goals per game (1.38). Virginia Peisch (1.47) and Kelly McHenry (1.13) are second and fifth, respectively in assists per game. Defensively, Dartmouth has struggled, giving up more than three goals per game (3.06). Goalie Meagan Vakiener (Port Murray, N.J.) has started all but one game and has posted a 2.94 goals-against average to go along with a .639 save percentage and a 9-5 record.

Peisch (Koenigstein, Germany) recently was selected to play in the NFHCA Senior Game. She is ranked second nationally in assists per game as she continues to lead the Big Green with 22 this year. McHenry (Williamsburg, Va.), Peisch and Hood are the top scoring leaders for Dartmouth as the three have tallied 30 goals and 42 assists.

The Big Green currently sits in fourth place in the Ivy League and a win over the Big Red would help Dartmouth secure at least a third place finish in the league for the fourth year in a row. With a Cornell win and a Yale loss, the Big Red would move into second-place, finishing in the top two for the fourth time in five years.

vs. Cornell (10-5, 4-2 Ivy)
Date: Saturday, Nov. 6, 2010 • 12 p.m.
Location: Marsha Dodson Field • Ithaca, N.Y.
Livestats • Cornell's Website

Series Record: Dartmouth leads 20-10-1
Streak: Cornell +4
Dartmouth leads, 20-10-1 as the two teams first began meeting in 1979. Dartmouth won the next five meetings before the Big Red snapped its losing streak in 1985. From there, the series was fairly even until 1998 when the Big Green began an eight-game winning-streak against the Big Red. Cornell ended Dartmouth's run in 2006 and has extended its winning streak to four games.

Schedules