The loss to Harvard a month ago seemed to have broken the impenetrable armor of the Big Green scoring machine, but the lady icers say they have regrouped and are ready for their second season, which begins against Colgate this weekend.
By the end of January, Dartmouth had amassed a program-best 19-1 record and seemed poised to claim the conference title. Then a series of unfortunate events handicapped the Big Green, and the team now finds itself heading into the playoffs with a second seed.
It all started with a five-goal effort by Crimson forward Nicole Corriero on Feb. 5 in Thompson Arena. Harvard left Hanover with a 6-3 victory that day, and in the stretch of the next six contests, Dartmouth managed only a 3-3 record, scoring a combined 13 goals in those games.
The Big Green makes no excuses about the slide at the end of the regular season, but any followers of the team will point to the slew of injuries that continue to plague the squad.
"We have so many injuries, I don't even know where to begin," said head coach Mark Hudak. "It's a day-to-day process of trying to figure out who is going to be ready and who will not. We are hoping that everyone will be dressed for the weekend, but even now that does not look promising."
Cherie Piper '06, the team's leading scorer, is nursing a separated shoulder, and though she toughed it out in 4-3 loss to Harvard last weekend, she will likely not be at 100 percent. Team co-captain Meagan Walton '05 has been playing with a broken finger that rendered her incapable of taking hard shots. Despite the injury, Walton scored Dartmouth's first goal last weekend.
Gillian Apps '06 has been bothered by a back injury, and Caroline Ethier '07 left last weekend's game against Brown with a knee injury and did not return.
"It's become so commonplace on the team in the last few weeks," said Hudak. "We're just taking it all in stride at this point."
The next step on the road for Dartmouth is a tough Colgate team. The Raiders lost both games to the Big Green in the regular season, but only by one on each occasion. Coming into the playoffs, Colgate is riding a seven-game unbeaten streak and aims to score the biggest upset in the tournament.
Senior Amanda Barre and junior Becky Irvine lead the Colgate (16-13-4, 9-7-4 ECACHL) offense, while senior goalie Rebecca Lahar and sophomore Brook Wheeler anchor the defense. The team's goals allowed average of 2.12 is slightly better than the Big Green's 2.14 goals allowed. The balance of this combination has given Dartmouth trouble all season.
"Colgate is a very solid team that plays with a lot of grit with a good goalie to back it up," said Hudak. "For us, it's completely about the mental preparation for the weekend. We need to be ready and playing as one unit for two full games."
Despite uncertainties, injuries and games missed by top scorers, Dartmouth still boasts the nation's top scoring offense with 4.86 goals per game. Piper leads the Big Green with 51 points, followed by Katie Weatherston '06, who tallied 46 on the season.
Dartmouth also has the nation's second-best power-play unit at 26.2 percent. The drastic improvement from last year can be attributed to Piper's handling of the point position on man-advantage situations.
To complement the potent offense, both Dartmouth goalies rank in the top 15 in the nation in goals allowed. Sophomore Christine Capuano leads the team with her 1.91 GAA, but junior Kate Lane has a higher save percentage at .907.
The best of three playoff series against Colgate will begin on Friday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. in Thompson Arena, preceding the men's playoff series against Yale.
"High energy, strong work ethic, smart play and everyone giving everything they've got," said Hudak about his expectations of the team. "It's playoff hockey and we want to be there at the end."
ECACHL Championships will be held at Union College on March 13, and the NCAA Championship game will be hosted by UNH on March 26.
