The Big Green women's hockey team is preparing for a tough weekend as the Tigers and the Bulldogs come to Hanover. Princeton slid forward last week to take over the top spot in the Ivy League, while Yale is alone in last place.
The weekend may become a battle of the goalies, as the goalies from all three teams are league standouts. Of the three, Sarah Tueting '98 ranks number one with a .957 save percentage. Princeton's Liz Hill follows close behind with a .932 percentage and Yale's Laurie Belliveau trails with .867.
While Belliveau's record may not be quite as impressive as Tueting's and Hill's, she has saved 228 goals out of 263 Ivy League shots. Tueting has saved 88 out of 92 and Hill has saved 55 out of 59.
Princeton comes into the game with a 5-1 Ivy League record. Yale's season has not been nearly as good, and the Bulldogs are sporting a 0-7 record. Dartmouth is currently in a second place tie with Brown, carrying a 3-1-1 league record.
Dartmouth has faced both teams already this season. On Jan. 7, Princeton defeated Dartmouth at Princeton, 3-0. The Big Green rebounded the next day to crush Yale 10-3.
In the Princeton game, Karen Chernisky scored two of Princeton's goals, while P. R. Stark had the third.
But the second time around with Princeton should be much different. The Dartmouth team has significantly increased its scoring power since the first matchup. After the Jan. 7 game, Coach George Crowe said that "it could have gone either way."
"Princeton is huge and on all of our minds. We want a little revenge and an Ivy League ring," Rachel Rochat '95 said.
Chernisky and Kathy Issel are the Princeton players to watch. Issel is the leading scorer for Princeton. She has 17 goals and 20 assists for a total of 37 points this season. Issel, a senior, is presently in fourth place in the Princeton record books for the most goals ever scored in a season.
Chernisky follows closely behind Issel in scoring, tallying 16 goals and 13 assists. She received Ivy League Rookie of the Week this past week.
While this will be a tough game for the Big Green, Princeton is by no means unbeatable. Back in December, Harvard lost 2-0 to Dartmouth, then upset Princeton, 3-0, suggesting that Dartmouth definitely has what it takes to win this game.
The Yale game is a different story, and the Big Green should have little trouble tallying the victory. Yale has had little success this season, losing every game.
"Hopefully we can beat Yale like we beat McGill [12-2] in order to get ready for Sunday, good passing, hard skating, lots of pretty goals," Rochat said.
In Dartmouth's 10-3 victory earlier this season, Rosemarie Roberts and Wendy Yoshino scored Yale's three goals, with Roberts notching two.
Belliveau will be Dartmouth's toughest obstacle in this game. Getting the puck past her will not be an easy task.
Dartmouth takes on Yale on Saturday and Princeton on Sunday. Both games begin at 3:00 in Thompson Arena.
