Saturday Poses Big Test For Big Green as They Host No. 3 Duke

Game 5 - Saturday, March 17, 2012 - 12 p.m.
No. 10/17 Dartmouth Big Green (4-0, 1-0 Ivy) vs.
No. 3/4 Duke Blue Devils (8-2, 2-0 ACC)
Location: Hanover, N.H. - Scully-Fahey Field
All-Time Series: Duke, 11-5
First Meeting: March 21, 1996 - W, 10-7(Away)
Last Meeting: March 19, 2011 - L, 15-7 (Away)
Streak: Duke, 7-0
Last Dartmouth Win: May 7, 2003 - 9-7 (Away)
In Hanover vs. Duke: 2-4

Dartmouth Game Notes - Live Stats - Live Video ($) - Duke Preview

HANOVER, N.H. - Saturday afternoon at Scully-Fahey Field will be one of the biggest tests the No. 10/17 Dartmouth women's lacrosse team has faced in recent seasons.

Because it is Saturday at noon on the Big Green's home turf that they will square off with the No. 3/4 Duke Blue Devils in a game that could help propel the home team into the national discussion of powerhouse programs in 2012.

Coming into the game with a 4-0 record, Dartmouth is one of just seven teams in the nation whose record is unblemished in the loss category. Duke, on the other hand, is 8-2 this season and ranks in the top four in both national polls this week.

A battle of two highly-ranked teams that play annually should provide entertaining lacrosse for those in attendance.

GAME NOTES

LAST TIME OUT
Dartmouth won its fourth game in a row to start the 2012 season with a 13-9 home victory over rival Vermont Wednesday afternoon. The win was the 11th straight for the Big Green over the Catamounts, a streak that dates back to the 1994 season. Grabbing an early 8-0 lead, the defense was called upon late to hold off Vermont's capable offense of pulling even in the final minutes of regulation.

SCOUTING DUKE
The Blue Devils come to Hanover sporting an 8-2 mark after taking down ACC foe Virginia Tech, 18-8, Wednesday afternoon in Blacksburg. The 10-goal victory was the fifth straight overall for the Dukies who are now 2-0 in conference match-ups this season and have not lost a game since Feb. 19 to No. 1 Northwestern. Freshman Taylor Trimble scored a career-high five times against the Hokies to pull even with Kerrin Maurer for the team lead. Maurer's 18 goals, 18 assists and 36 points, though, rank at the top of every category for the Blue Devils. Mollie Mackler has played all but 23:24 in goal this season, posting a save percentage of .481 and a goals-against mark of 8.43.

WHAT A DAY
Sophomore goalkeeper Kristen Giovanniello (Old Brookville, N.Y.) played the best statistical game of her college career against the Catamounts. The second-year keeper stopped a career-high 17 saves and picked up a career-best seven ground balls in the win. Giovanniello's previous best mark for saves in a game came last season at Vermont, stopping 15 on that day in Burlington. Her nine first-half saves alone on Wednesday would have been her best figure of the season, but she would go on to add eight more in the next 30 minutes of play to finish with 17.

THAT MARK LASTED A WHOLE THREE WEEKS
After opening the season with a career-high five goals against UNH, senior Kirsten Goldberg (Cockeysville, Md.) wasted little time in surpassing that figure in the team's fourth game with six goals against Vermont. Four times in the first half Goldberg found the back of the net, including the eventual game winner with 18 seconds remaining. Her two assists in the win were one shy of her career high set last week against BU, but gave her eight points on the afternoon, also setting a new career-best mark.

MULTIMEDIA
Saturday afternoon's game with the Blue Devils will be streamed live on Big Green Insider, the official audio and video portal of Dartmouth Varsity Athletics. Fans can also follow the action using live stats and in-game tweets on the team's official Twitter page, @DartmouthWLAX. (NOTE: The video stream will stop at halftime and resume again with the start of the second half).

THREE'S ENOUGH
In all, five players scored multiple points against UVM. But after Goldberg's eight, sophomore Liz Calby's (Darien, Conn.) three were the next best. Calby scored once in each half and assisted on Goldberg's first of the day.

SEE IT, PICK IT UP
Senior Sarah Plumb (Wellesley, Mass.) was held to under five points for the first time in any game this season when she scored once and added an assist against the Catamounts. However, Plumb's team-leading four draw controls moved her into fourth all-time at Dartmouth with 96 for her career. Against BU in the team's last game, Plumb set a Dartmouth record with nine in a game and has 22 draw controls this season to rank second in the Ivy League.

SAVE/GB TOTALS
Giovanniello's 17 saves against Vermont catapulted her to the top of the Ivy League with 37 overall this season. Her 9.25 per game is one full save higher than second-place Kelly Weis of Harvard. Her game-high seven ground balls also moved her into second in the conference ranks with 15 and 3.75 per contest in 2012.

LAST TIME AGAINST DUKE
Dartmouth made the trip to Durham last season for a meeting with then-No. 3 Duke at Koskinen Stadium. The Big Green, ranked 18th in the country at that time, dropped its first game played in 10 days following exams to the Blue Devils, 15-7, after an evenly-matched first half. Giovanniello recorded 13 saves and four ground balls, while Goldberg had two goals and Plumb one in the defeat. That game also wrapped up a four-game road swing for Dartmouth and pushed the Blue Devils win streak over the Big Green to seven. Calby's first career goal came against Duke in that game.

THE RANKINGS
Since the weekly polls are released on Tuesday mornings, the rankings of both teams have not changed since midweek wins. Duke is third in the Inside Lacrosse deBeers Media Poll and fourth in the IWLCA rankings. Dartmouth has a slightly more noticeable contrast in rankings between the two as it is 10th in the deBeers poll and 17th in the coaches poll.

FACTS AND FIGURES
- The Big Green's season-high 24 ground balls against UVM helped move them to the top of the Ivy League with an average of 17.25 a game.
- Despite the fact that it's 26 shots on Wednesday were a season low for Dartmouth, it ranks second in the league with 28.75 per game through four games this season.
- Dartmouth's 7.50 goals-against average ranks second in the conference, while its 30 goals allowed are the fewest by any Ivy team.
- The Big Green's (Giovanniello) .552 save percentage this season is not only the best amongst all programs in the conference, but also is the only figure over .500 thus far.

THE DARIEN DUO
Junior Courtney Bennett (Darien, Conn.) scored twice against Vermont just as her hometown teammate Liz Calby did. Bennett doubled her season goal total with the two markers against the Catamounts to four through four games. The junior midfielder also added two caused turnovers in the win, matching her career high.

GOOD START
Dartmouth's 4-0 record is the best start for the Big Green since the 2005 season when it began 13-0 and made it all the way to the NCAA Final Four.

HOME SWEET HOME
With the victory over the Catamounts, Dartmouth has now won 11 of its last 12 at Scully-Fahey dating back to the start of last season.

Schedules