From the first face-off in yesterday afternoon's defeat of Bowdoin, the game belonged to the Dartmouth women's hockey team. Not only did the Big Green outscore the Polar Bears, but they dominated the entire game, winning 8-2.
"We moved the puck pretty well and were able to control it. We had much better scoring opportunities," Coach George Crowe said.
The first two minutes of the game showed off Dartmouth's skating and passing skills. The team confidently took control from the start, demonstrating the skills that would see them through the rest of the game.
Dartmouth was taken by surprise, though, when just 2:30 into the game, Bowdoin's Jessica Keating scored a fluke goal, assisted by Michel Phaneuf and Jane Kim and took a 1-0 lead over the Big Green.
For a few minutes, Dartmouth's game seemed to slow down and get sloppy. Players bumped into each other or fell, blowing several scoring opportunities.
Dartmouth soon recovered and took over again. The Big Green revived their passing game, firing shot after shot. They were finally rewarded eight minutes into the first period, when center Sarah Howald '96 scored off a pass from left-wing Rachel Rochat '95.
From then on, the Big Green were relentless. Two minutes after Dartmouth's first goal, Howald and Rochat reversed roles; Howald assisted Rochat's goal, giving Dartmouth a 2-1 lead.
Three minutes later, Dartmouth was back harassing Bowdoin goalie Dagan Klein. This time it was defenseman Amy Coelho '97 who carried the puck down the ice and, unloading it on Klein, scored unassisted.
After the first period the Big Green led 3-1.
Dartmouth's domination over Bowdoin was evident, as they won face-off after face-off. The team, playing its game, forced Bowdoin to play more defensively than offensively.
Dartmouth didn't let up in the second period. Twenty-seven seconds into the period, the Big Green were scoring again. Howald notched her second of the afternoon off an assist from defenseman Jennifer Lane '98.
Bowdoin got a chance to score again six minutes into the period on a breakaway by Kim. Goalie Sarah Lenczner '97 saved Kim's shot but Michel Phaneuf followed-up on the play and managed to slip the puck into the goal.
Eight-and-a-half minutes into the period, Bowdoin's Carey Jones went to the penalty box for interference. Sarah Hood '98 came out to play the power play and scored. Her goal was assisted by Rochat and Howald. The goal upped Dartmouth's advantage to three.
With 40 seconds left in the period, Erin Rath '98 scored with assists from Coelho and right-wing Emilie Schnitman '98. This goal ended the second period with a Dartmouth lead of 6-2.
Dartmouth retook the ice ready to score again. Fifty seconds into the period, Howald completed her second hat trick in three games with an assist from Rochat.
With two minutes left in the game, Rochat scored her second. Defenseman Michelyne Pinard '98 assisted Rochat to end the game 8-2.
The team took a total of 46 shots, 19 and 18 in the first two periods, respectively. Lenczner had 11 saves.
"It was a hard game to play. We have a lot better skills than Bowdoin. We tended to slow down and just go through the motions. This weekend will be better, though. We are going to give [Brown and Providence] a run for their money. We can win," Howald said.
The win improves Dartmouth's record to 8-5-2.
This weekend Dartmouth hosts Brown, who hold the number one national ranking, on Saturday and last year's ECAC champions Providence, on Sunday. "These are going to be huge games for us," Crowe said. Both games begin at 3:00 at Thompson Arena.
