Dartmouth Women Head to California for Two-Game Swing

The Dartmouth women's soccer team heads to California, home state of seven players, to take on #17 San Diego and Pepperdine.

The Big Green (1-1) will soak up some SoCal rays during the four-day trip, but will also be well tested by the west coast squads that will have each played five games this season. #17 San Diego currently stands at 4-1 on the season, losing only to Minnesota, 2-1 while Pepperdine is 2-2 overall, with both losses coming by one goal.

This is the start of a five-game road trip for Dartmouth, which does not return to Burnham Field for a game until Sept. 26 when it hosts Brown.

Game 3: Dartmouth (1-1) at #17 San Diego (4-1)
Date: Friday, Sept. 10, 2010, 7:00 PM (PST)/10:00 PM (EST)
Location: Torero Stadium, San Diego Calif.
Series Record: First Meeting
Livestats • Live Video ($)

Game 4: Dartmouth (1-1) at Pepperdine (3-2)
Date: Sunday, Sept. 12, 2010 • 1:00 PM (PST)/4:00 PM (EST)
Location: Rokus Field, Malibu, Calif.
Series Record: First Meeting
Livestats • Live Video ($)

CALIFORNIA DREAMIN': This year's trip west marks Dartmouth's return to California for the first time since the 2005 season when the Big Green played in a tournament at St. Mary's. Dartmouth dropped a 1-0 overtime heartbreaker to #10 Cal and lost 2-0 to the host Gaels. Dartmouth has only traveled to the Golden State one other time, facing Santa Clara in the 2001 NCAA Tournament third round, a 2-0 loss. This year's trip has the Big Green in search of its first victory in California. Seven players including seniors Sarah Bromley (La Jolla, Calif.) and Katie Davis (San Marino, Calif.) call California home.

A LOOK AT DARTMOUTH: Dartmouth opened the 2010 season with a 1-1 weekend at its own Dartmouth Nike Classic. The Big Green shook off a 1-0 loss to Colgate in the opener to defeat Northeastern, 1-0, in its Sunday finale. The tournament proved to be very competitive with each team winning one game. Dartmouth had some good opportunities on Friday night against Colgate, but was unable to find the back of the net. The Big Green emerged with a 1-0 win over Northeastern in a very physical battle. Senior Peyton Tata (Virginia Beach, Va.) scored just five minutes into the second half off a ball from sophomore Libby Hamlin (Vernon, Conn.) and the defense helped the shutout hold for the win. Three freshmen saw action on the weekend, including midfielder Marina Moschitto (Andover, Mass.), who started both games and was named to the all-tournament team.

A LOOK AT SAN DIEGO: #17 San Diego (4-1) has picked up wins over USC, Arizona, Michigan and Marquette so far this season. The team ranked 14th last week but took a small hit in the polls after a 2-1 loss at Minnesota. The Toreros have scored nine goals and surrendered only three. Two players lead San Diego with five points each as Stephanie Ochs and Devany Savage have each tallied a goal and an assist. Courtney Parsons boasts a 0.60 goals against average with 36 saves and an impressive .923 save percentage.

A LOOK AT PEPPERDINE: Pepperdine (3-2) has opened the season with wins over Fresno State, Arizona and Detroit and one-goal losses to both Michigan and Cal State Northridge. The Waves have spread the wealth offensively, as 10 players have recorded a point and seven have two or more. Anisa Guajardo leads the team with 10 points on four goals and two assists. Primary goalkeeper Roxanne Barker holds down the defense with a 0.85 goals against average and 20 saves to date.

NEXT TIME OUT: The Big Green returns home to Hanover for a few days before heading back out on a lengthy road trip. Dartmouth will head down to Quinnipiac for a matchup on Friday, Sept. 17 before going out to State College to take on perennial power Penn State on Sunday, Sept. 19. The Big Green also plays at UNH on Sept. 23 before hosting Brown in its Ivy opener on the 26th.

Schedules