It was a happy holiday for the women's hockey team this year. Since Nov. 22, the team went 6-3-0, dropping only one of its last five games, as the Big Green increased their overall record to 9-5-0 on the season.
"We've been getting progressively better," co-Captain Sarah Howald '96 said. "We had a tough time with some of the first games. We're back on track."
Before Break
The team came out strong during its pre-break games back in November. Beginning with a face-off at Boston College Nov. 22, Dartmouth picked up its first win.
The Big Green, down by one after the first period, picked up in the second to take a 5-3 lead over the Eagles.
However, it was BC that made the comeback in the third period, as the Trojans tied the game at five.
Dartmouth's Sarah Halsell '99, with the aid of Sarah Hood '98, slipped in the game-winning goal late in the period to give Dartmouth the 6-5 win.
Dartmouth goalie Sarah Tueting '98 tallied 22 saves to preserve the Big Green win.
Dartmouth's next battle was at the Across the Border Challenge where the Big Green took on a Canadian team, Queen's College and then Cornell.
In the first game, after goals from Jessica Clark '98 in the first period and Howald and Malaika Little '97 in the second, Dartmouth found itself tied at three with Queens.
Howald came up with a final goal with 4:15 left in the game with assists from Kathleen O'Keefe '99 and Amy Coelho '97. This goal left the score at 4-3 in favor of Dartmouth.
Dartmouth did not fare as well in the second game of the tournament, dropping a 2-1 decision to Cornell.
O'Keefe came up with Dartmouth's only score of the game early in the third, but that goal could not make up for the 2-0 hole the team had already dug for itself.
As the rest of the Dartmouth community finished classes and began preparing for exams, the hockey team moved on to its final pre-break game at Providence College on Nov. 29.
Despite Tueting's 28 saves, Dartmouth could not find the Providence net and fell, 5-0. Providence freshman Laurie Baker led her team to the win, tallying four of the five Lady Friar goals.
Dartmouth finished up its Fall term play slightly on the positive side, earning a 5-4 record overall.
During Break
The team had few days of break before starting up again, this time at home against Ivy League opponent Yale on Dec. 9. Yale's main power resided between the posts but even goalie Laurie Belliveau's 41 saves were not enough to hold off a Dartmouth onslaught, and the Big Green notched another win, 7-0.
Dartmouth spread out its scoring evenly among seven different players, with O'Keefe, Little, Clark, Howald, Halsell, Wendy Soutsos '99 and Hood putting in one goal each.
Yale's biggest trouble was in its offense. Over the course of the game, Yale took only nine shots to Dartmouth's 48.
Dartmouth and Ivy rival Princeton held each other in check throughout the first period of their battle on Dec. 10, and neither team allowed any goals.
In the third, Jen Lane '98 gave Dartmouth the advantage early, assisted by Michelyne Pinard '98 and Emilie Schnitman '98, But Princeton soon tied the game at 3-3..
But the Big Green jumped back on top on goals from Pinard and Phoebe Manchester '96, and Dartmouth held on for the 5-3 win.
Tueting had 29 saves in the win.
Dartmouth Tournament
The team returned to Hanover before the end of Winter break to host the Dartmouth Round Robin Tournament from Dec. 29-30, and the Big Green picked up wins in two out of three games.
In Game One, Dartmouth had a better showing than its previous match-up with Queens College, shutting out the Canadian team, 5-0.
Hood and Howald collected two goals each, while O'Keefe added one with assists from Sara Nelson '99 and Ginger Kreitler '98. Queens goalie Tammy Eger had a strong showing in the loss, tallying 29 saves. The Dartmouth shutout was credited to Melissa Siegfried '96.
Dartmouth, running on a three-game winning streak, moved on to Cornell next. Again, Dartmouth improved over earlier season play, defeating the Big Red 3-0, with Tueting recording the shutout behind 28 saves..
But the Big Green fell in their final game of the tournament to Northeastern, 3-2. Goals from Howald and O'Keefe were not enough to gain a Dartmouth win.
Dartmouth continues home play this weekend in Thompson Arena. On Saturday, the Big Green host St. Lawrence at 3:00 p.m.. On Sunday, Dartmouth looks to preserve its undefeated status in the Ivy League when it squares off against Cornell at 2:00 p.m.
