To the Editor:
How many people do you know who earn a degree from Dartmouth and have the opportunity to play for a National Championship? That's exactly what the Dartmouth women's lacrosse team was able to write in the history books this past weekend. Being Dartmouth students places the team members in an elite group; the women's lacrosse teams who qualify for the Final Four are an elite group of athletes as well. It is not often that these two groups intersect. In fact, they have never intersected at Dartmouth until now. It is a very special experience and an impressive accomplishment.
I felt so much Dartmouth pride as I drove into the parking lot at Trenton State and spotted the Vermont Transit Bus (the official carrier of Dartmouth athletes). It was awesome to watch our team take the field to battle the defending National Champions -- Princeton. The intense rivalry between the two teams in addition to the pressure at the Final Four created excitement for the crowd and adrenaline surges for the players. Although the Dartmouth team would have preferred a different outcome, the outcome is not the sole measure of what one learns as a Final Four participant. The respect earned during the process of getting to the Final Four, the demanding preparation and the commitment are the things which make the experience so unique and significant. I sincerely wish more Dartmouth students and fans could have shared the electricity with the team. We were clearly outnumbered in fan support, but we gained quite a few fans during the tournament.
Whether or not anyone wants to admit it, athletics is arguably the best visibility for an academic institution. Regardless of how you feel about athletics or how much school pride you have, you can rest easy knowing that our women's lacrosse team just created an incredible amount of positive press and positive visibility for Dartmouth. Their class, athletic ability and accomplishments on as well as off the field are impressive. They sum up what it really means to be "student athletes." They are an elite group who have truly experienced the best of both worlds -- academics and athletics.
