The women’s hockey team fell in both home games this weekend. The Big Green (0-3-0, 0-2-0 ECAC) lost its home opener to Princeton University (1-1-0, 1-1-0 ECAC) Friday, followed by a loss to ninth-ranked Quinnipiac University (6-1-1, 1-1-1 ECAC) Saturday.
The home opener against Princeton started strong with a Catherine Berghuis ’16 goal in the first 10 minutes, and the first period ended with a tied score of 1-1.
“Before the game we were definitely enthusiastic, since it was our home opener which is a big deal, especially for the freshmen,” Lindsey Allen ’16 said. “There were definitely a lot of nerves too. It was family weekend so a lot of parents came down for the first time. It was also an Ivy game so people were a lot more pumped up. All the energy helped us play better, but there might have been too much energy and not enough focus when the game started.”
The Big Green focused in on the second period, where a Katy Ratty ’17 goal was the only score. Exiting the ice with a 2-1 lead after the second period, Dartmouth was not able to keep up its energy and play during the third period.
“We were really focusing on coming out strong during the second period because we struggled with that in our last two games,” goalie Lindsay Holdcroft ’14 said. “All of our freshmen are doing an awesome job. We’re a small team so they are really getting thrown into the mix early, and we had some big goals from them. ”
Princeton scored 30 seconds into the third period to tie the game, and then again with about eight minutes left to seal the win. The loss was the first time in 17 games the team lost after entering the third period with the lead.
“After Princeton’s first goal the energy on the bench went way down,” Allen said. “We didn’t respond well when they scored at any time. We need to be positive all the time and it all starts on the bench. We need to work on the mental aspect of the game, even though that’s not necessarily done in practice. My teammates set up meetings with Dartmouth’s sports psychologist, who helps them stay focused and keep their energy up, which helps the whole team.”
Dartmouth returned to Thompson Arena Saturday afternoon to take on Quinnipiac. The Big Green started out strong, maintaining the same number of shots as Quinnipiac in the first period, and starting out with a lead when forward Kennedy Ottenbreit ’17 scored six minutes into the first period. Quinnipiac was able to score to tie the game before the end of the period.
“I just happened to be the person who got the shot in,” Ottenbreit said. “The line worked really hard to get the puck to the net and take shots. We came in really positive and focused, and we couldn’t think about our last game: we focused on the things we could do. Playing for Dartmouth is one of the best feelings I’ve ever had.”
The Big Green struggled more when they returned to the ice with only seven shots to Quinnipiac’s 11. The Bobcats began the period with a goal, but Dartmouth was able to tie the game again when Allen scored seven minutes into the period. Quinnipiac responded with a goal eight minutes later and did not give up the lead, scoring again at the end of the third period.
“Quinnipiac was a better game, even if the outcome wasn’t what we wanted,” Holdcroft said. “We had to get excited and come out with a lot of energy. We focused on doing the little things right and playing really hard for the entire game.”
The team remained dedicated even in the face of the Bobcats’ strong team.
“Quinnipiac is ranked ninth in the country and we knew they had a really good first line,” Holdcroft said. “Even though we knew the strengths and weaknesses of the other team and what we had to watch for, we still focused on playing our game.”
The Big Green returns to the ice for two more ECAC games next weekend against Union College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
“We are going to keep focusing on a lot of the little things,” Holdcroft said. “We’re trying to get everyone acquainted with our system. Even though the results weren’t what we ideally wanted this weekend, we’re in a good place for next weekend. We’re going to come in with a lot of energy and work toward the outcome we really want.”
