#12 Dartmouth Heads to Maryland to Tango with #1 Terps

The #12 Dartmouth women's lacrosse team will look to further boost its NCAA Tournament resume this Saturday when it squares off against #1 Maryland with a 12 p.m. start in College Park. The Terrapins will be a formidable foe for Dartmouth, having lost just one game all season, but a solid showing should help the Big Green's quest for an at-large bid. The complete 16-team NCAA Tournament field will be announced on Sunday, May 9 at 10 p.m.

Dartmouth at Maryland Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Game 16: #12 Dartmouth (11-4, 5-2 Ivy) at #1 Maryland (17-1, 4-1 ACC)
Date: Saturday, May 8, 2010 • 12:00 PM

Location: College Park, Md. • Ludwig Field

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Dartmouth - Maryland Series: Maryland leads, 16-1
Last Meeting: 3/18/09 • Hanover, N.H.
Result: Maryland 13 - Dartmouth 12 (OT)
Streak: Maryland +4
Maryland holds a commanding lead in the series, with Dartmouth's lone win by its eventual Final Four team early in 2005. The Big Green scared the #2 Terps last spring with a shorthanded 13-12 loss.

GOING FOR ANOTHER MARQUEE WIN
Having missed out on the Ivy League's NCAA Tournament autobid by one goal, #12 Dartmouth has one more chance to boost its at--large resume at #1 Maryland this Saturday. The Big Green has already fared well against the rest of the top-20, winning at #8 Notre Dame, 12-8, at #6 Syracuse, 17-10 and against #18 Boston University, 15-10. Dartmouth has also played #6 Penn twice, but was unable to break through against the Quakers, recently falling 9-8 in the Ivy Championship.
A win over the Terps would be a big plus for Dartmouth's tournament resume, as the Big Green looks to hand Maryland just its second loss of the season. Last season, an unranked Dartmouth team played #2 Maryland to a 13-12 overtime loss with three Big Green starters sidelined with injury.

HEARTBREAK IN PHILADELPHIA
Dartmouth came all the way back from a five-goal deficit to tie the game but could not get over the hump in a 9-8 loss at Penn in the Ivy Tournament championship on May 2. The teams battled on a blazingly hot and humid day at Penn's own Franklin Field. The Big Green's defense kept the game in reach despite getting outshot, 15-2, in the first half. Several big stands and seven first half saves by Julie Wadland made it just a 5-2 Penn lead at halftime. The Quakers made it 7-2 early in the first half, but Dartmouth would not be broken, going on a five-goal tear during a nine minute stretch to tie the game at 7-7 with 17:57 to play. In true Big Green fashion, Dartmouth had four different goal scorers in the stretch, including two of Kat Collins' three on the day. Penn answered back with two goals of its own for a 9-7 lead at 11:11 on the clock, but sophomore Kirsten Goldberg made a great hustle play and scored to make it 9-8 with 5:16 to go. The Big Green won the ensuing draw and had the ball on attack, but Collins was called for a questionable charge, turning the ball back over to the Quakers, who ran a successful stall during the final four minutes. Wadland ended with nine saves in an impressive performance in goal despite the loss.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TALENT
Following its performance at the first-ever Ivy League Tournament, Dartmouth had six players - more than any other team - named to the All-Tournament team. Senior goalie Julie Wadland headlined the group after making 15 saves in two games to help defeat Cornell and stay within striking distance in the close loss to Penn. Two other defensive players made the team including junior Shannie MacKenzie whose play was strong all weekend and freshman Kelsey Johnson who tirelessly face-guarded Penn senior Ali DeLuca, Ivy League Player of the Year, holding her to two assists. Midfielders Sarah Plumb and Kirsten Goldberg each contributed five points on the weekend to earn spots on the team. Lastly, attacker Kat Collins, who made a triumphant return from an eight-game injury absence, tallied five points including three goals against Penn to make the team.

GREEN SHUTS DOWN RED IN IVY SEMI
#11 Dartmouth, the number two seed, defeated three-seed Cornell in the first Ivy League Tournament semifinal on Friday afternoon. The Big Green and Big Red were deadlocked at multiple points in the game, including a 4-4 halftime tie after both goalies made six saves each in the first half. Dartmouth pulled away early in the second half for a 7-5 lead at 24:39, but Cornell tied it right back up five minutes later, 7-7. The teams traded goals, with Dartmouth's eighth coming from Sarah Plumb, and Cornell's tying free position goal coming at 18:14. Dartmouth's defense took over from that point on, holding the Big Red scoreless for the rest of the game. Kirsten Goldberg scored her third goal of the game at 12:48 and Plumb won the ensuing draw and went straight to goal just nine seconds later for the eventual 10-8 final. The defense made some epic stops, including a four minute-thirty second stand, a three minute stand and Shannie MacKenzie caused a late turnover to prevent a Cornell timeout call.

HOMECOMING FOR COACH
The Dartmouth-Maryland series provides head coach Amy Patton with a return to her roots every other year. Patton graduated from Maryland in 1988, where she played both lacrosse and field hockey, earning All-ACC and All-America honors in lacrosse. She served as a volunteer assistant for Maryland's 1990 NCAA runner-up team before coming to Dartmouth as an assistant in 1991. When Patton took over as head coach in 1993, Dartmouth began its annual series with Maryland, playing all but one year since.

TOUGH PILLS TO SWALLOW
Of Dartmouth's four losses, three have been by one goal and on the road including at Princeton and at #6 Penn in the Ivy tournament, making for some long trips back to Hanover. Dartmouth's fourth loss also came to Penn, a three-goal deficit. Ultimately, the Big Green's four losses this season have come by a combined six goals and the only real negative losses on its NCAA Tournament resume are both by one goal on the road.

MAGNIFICENT SEVEN NAMED ALL-IVY
Dartmouth saw the first rewards of its impressive season today when a league-best seven student-athletes were named All-Ivy, featuring a trio of first team honorees.
The selections are headlined by junior attack Greta Meyer's unanimous spot on the All-Ivy first team, her third straight All-Ivy nod. Senior goalie Julie Wadland is a repeat selection to the All-Ivy first team while junior defender Shannie MacKenzie makes an impressive All-Ivy debut as a member of the first team. Do-everything sophomore middie Sarah Plumb was named to the All-Ivy second team as was senior defender Colleen Olsen, earning her second straight selection despite missing three recent games. Two sophomore scorers rounded out the All-Ivy group as attack Sarah Parks and midfielder Kirsten Goldberg earned honorable mention status.

QUICK ON THE DRAW
Coach Patton made a smart switch in the second half against Penn on May 2. With Dartmouth trailing 7-2 and struggling to win the draw, she moved rookie Courtney Bennett into the draw circle, freeing up Sarah Plumb to corral the ball. It worked immediately, with Plumb winning the first draw that Bennett took, taking it straight to cage for a score. Dartmouth ultimately won six of the next nine draws, with two each from Plumb and Bennett.

KAT'S BACK ON THE PROWL
Onlookers at the Ivy League Tournament were surprised to see Dartmouth's big gun, 5-11 attacker Kat Collins back in uniform and patrolling the arc. Collins, a junior, had missed eight games since an injury suffered at Syracuse, but made an impressive recovery and contributed a goal and an assist against Cornell and had three goals against Penn. Prior to her injury, Collins had contributed 19 points in five games, including 15 goals. Putting even more perspective on it, she averaged 3.2 points per game in 2009 and led the Ivy League in scoring as a first team All-Ivy and second team All-Northeast pick.

WELCOME BACK COLLEEN
Senior defender Colleen Olsen returned to the lineup at Princeton after missing three straight games including Cornell, Penn and Harvard with an injury. Though her return did not make for a Big Green victory, the All-Ivy defender tallied five ground balls and two caused turnovers. While Dartmouth won two of three games without Olsen, a US National Developmental Team player, it gave up an uncharacteristic nine goals to Penn and Harvard. Dartmouth did defeat Cornell on the road, 9-6, without Olsen.

SCORING STREAKS
Two Dartmouth attackers have point streaks that date back to last season. Junior Greta Meyer has tallied a goal or an assist in all 15 games this season and her total streak is 21 games with a point. Sophomore Sarah Parks has also scored in every game this season and has a 19-game streak.

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