#16 Dartmouth Set to Host Yale in Saturday Ivy Tilt

Fresh off a big win at #6 Syracuse, the Dartmouth women's lacrosse team is back in Hanover to open a two game homestand against Yale this Saturday at 1 p.m.

Please Note: Parking at the Thompson Lot for Saturday's game may be limited due to the Home Show going on at the Leverone Field House. Please plan accordingly.

Dartmouth vs. Yale Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Game 6: Yale (4-4, 1-1 Ivy) at #16 Dartmouth (4-1, 1-0 Ivy)
Date: Saturday, March 27, 2010 • 1:00 PM
Location: Hanover, N.H. • Scully Fahey Field
Multimedia: Livestats • Live Video ($)

Dartmouth - Yale Series: Dartmouth leads, 20-13
Last Meeting: 3/22/09 • New Haven, Conn.

Result: Dartmouth 8 - Yale 6
Streak: Dartmouth +1
Dartmouth seeks to increase its winning streak against Yale to two in its second Ivy League game of the season. The Ivy foes have met annually since 1977, with Yale winning the first six before Dartmouth broke through for a 10-9 win in 1983. After a loss the following season, the Big Green went on to win 15 of the next 16 meetings including a nine-game winning streak through 2000. The Bulldogs snapped the streak with a 13-7 win in 2001. Yale had a modest three game winning streak in the series from 2006-08 before Dartmouth got back on the winning side with an 8-6 triumph last spring.

BRING ON THE BULLDOGS
Fresh off a huge win at #6 Syracuse, #16 Dartmouth looks to increase its winning streak to five games and remain unbeaten at home today. Dartmouth opens its only homestand — albeit a modest two-game one — of the season against Yale. This could prove to be an exciting contest, with both teams coming off of huge momentum wins. Yale has turned in two straight impressive efforts, knocking off #13 Boston University, 11-9, midweek and giving #4 Penn all it could handle in a 7-5 loss last Saturday. The Big Green's defense has been tremendous in Hanover, giving up just three goals at home this season.

ORANGE CRUSHED
#16 Dartmouth made a bold statement with a dominant 17-10 victory at #6 Syracuse, a game in which the Big Green held a 10-goal lead midway through the second half. After going down 2-0 in the first 1:15 of the game, Dartmouth went on a 4-0 tear and never trailed again, including run of four goals in 1:32 to get that 4-2 lead. It was a game of runs for the Big Green, which also scored five unanswered during a seven-minute span later in the first half and four in a span of 2:16 early in the second. Dartmouth led 10-6 at halftime and quickly extended the advantage to 17-7 with 16:30 to play in the game, stunning the Syracuse faithful with a running-clock lead. The Orange did score three goals in the next five minutes, but Julie Wadland kept them off the board in the final 11:09 and the offense was patient and deliberate, taking little chances in the waning minutes. Greta Meyer (5 g, 1 a) and Sarah Parks (4 g, 2 a) were the stars offensively for the Big Green in a balanced offense-defense effort.

TERRIERS COMING TO TOWN
Dartmouth continues its homestand New England rival Boston University comes to town on Wednesday, March 31 at 4 p.m. The Big Green and Terriers have traditionally had a spirited New England rivalry and Dartmouth will welcome back its loyal student fanbase after playing its last two home games during spring break.

WHERE WE RANK
#16 Dartmouth should get a big boost in the polls this week after knocking out #6 Syracuse this week. The Big Green has held steady at its ranking of 16th in the IWCLA coaches poll which it has held since March 8. Inside Lacrosse looks even more favorably on the Big Green, shooting up to 11th after being booted out of the rankings following the loss to UNH. Syracuse had been seventh in that poll. Six Dartmouth opponents are currently in the IWLCA Top-20 while six are ranked by Inside Lacrosse with a seventh, Princeton, receiving votes.

A LOOK AT YALE
The Bulldogs (4-4, 1-1 Ivy) have been a bit of a case for the Riddler lately, needing a goal with nine seconds remaining to defeat Brown three days before nearly upsetting #4 Penn and then sneaking past #13 Boston University. In the loss to Quakers, in which leading scorer Devon Rhodes was held in check, Whitney Quakenbush made six big saves to help keep the game tight. Quakenbush came up big again with a nice upset win for Yale over #13 Boston University, 11-9 on Wednesday, making 16 saves Like Dartmouth, Yale has a solid defense, only giving up double-digit goals twice this season. Quakenbush has already made 81 saves and sports an 8.62 goals against average.

RPI ROUNDUP
Following the win over Syracuse, Dartmouth saw its RPI (courtesy of LaxPower.com) move up to 14th and strength of schedule move to 21st. The LaxPower computer rankings put the Big Green at fourth nationally.

ROAD WARRIORS - FOR NOW
Dartmouth plays eight of its 14 regular season games on the road this season and the first three have been against teams that are currently ranked. The Big Green has gone 2-1 on the road, with both victories coming over top-20 programs at #12 Notre Dame and at #6 Syracuse, and a one-goal loss at UNH.The Big Green still must travel to Princeton and Maryland late in the year.

HOLDING DOWN HOMEFIELD
With a 2-0 record at home this season, the Big Green has given up just three goals in two contests on Scully Fahey Field, defeating Vermont, 22-2, and Columbia, 15-1. Two ranked foes, Boston University on March 31 and Penn on April 17, are scheduled to travel to Hanover this spring.

OFFENSIVE OVERLOAD
Dartmouth was offensively balanced and efficient at Syracuse, scoring 17 goals on 25 shots, putting 23 of those on goal. The Big Green also scored in back-breaking spurts. Early in the first half, Dartmouth scored four goals in a span of just 1:32 and opened the second half by scoring five goals in five minutes — including four in a stretch of 2:16.

OVERWHELMING THE ORANGE
While Dartmouth's offense bombarded the Syracuse defense, the Big Green's defense did a stellar job stifling its attack. Dartmouth held the Orange to just seven goals with 16:30 left to play in the game. Coming into the game, Syracuse had assisted on 57 of 81 goals, or 70 percent of non-free position scores. Against Dartmouth, the Cuse had just three assists on nine such goals.

BRICK WALL WADLAND
Defense has been Dartmouth's calling card thus far as the team has given up just 30 goals all season (6.00 GAA), among the tops in the nation. The goalies have faced just 84 shots total, with 68 of those coming on goal. When they do near the cage, senior Julie Wadland has been there to stonewall 54.5 percent of them, owning a 6.27 goals against average.
Classmate Chelsea Kirk has kept the pace when in goal herself, making two saves on both shots faced. Coach Patton expected this to be a strength for her team, which brought back a veteran defensive unit led by senior Colleen Olsen and junior Shannie MacKenzie. Olsen has seven ground balls and four caused turnovers but has made her presence felt on the draw circle with 13 draw controls. MacKenzie has seven ground balls and eight caused turnovers to date.

BALANCED ATTACK
Though the defense has been stifling, Dartmouth has also had some breakout offensive performances led by a balanced scoring front. Six Dartmouth players have recorded 10 points to date and seven players have scored at least seven goals. Juniors Kat Collins and Greta Meyer have scored 15 goals each and Meyer's 12 assists make her the team's top scorer with 27 points. Sarah Parks and Kirsten Goldberg have scored 11 and 10 goals each, respectively.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
Dartmouth had an exceptionally young lineup in both 2008 and 2009 and returned 11 starters for this season. Yet the Big Green remains a bit green now in 2010, with just two seniors starting. Dartmouth's lineup is generally more than half sophomores and freshmen. At Syracuse, the Big Green put two seniors, three juniors, six sophs and one freshman on the field and two more rookies came off the bench.

GRETA IN HIGH GEAR
Junior Greta Meyer is off to a hot start this spring and is on pace to have her best offensive season yet. Meyer leads Dartmouth with 27 points on 15 goals and a team-high 12 assists. She has been a staple in the lineup since arriving in Hanover, missing only one game in her career with 36 starts in 36 appearances. Currently running the offense, Meyer's 12 assists are already more than she tallied in either her freshman or sophomore seasons, when she had 31 and 37 points, respectively.

KAT ON THE PROWL
After leading the Ivy League in scoring last spring, junior Kat Collins picked up where she left off in this year's Ivy opener. Collins torched the Lions for six points including five goals, three of which were unassisted. The fierce 5-11 attacker leads Dartmouth with 15 goals overall this season, bringing her career tally to 87. Including her career assist totals, Collins has amassed 114 career points to date and is poised to begin her assault on the top-20 scoring lists.

Schedules