It is a goal that Northeastern goalie Shannon Meyers will not forget for a while. A goal that should not have tarnished Northeastern's then-perfect ECAC record, 6-0.
But it did.
The goal, by Amy Coelho '97, came late in the second period, and could not even be called a shot.
Coelho, whose team was tied with the Huskies at one, simply wanted to dump the puck into Northeastern's end to give her team time to switch lines.
Except for Meyers, no one was in Northeastern's half of the ice. Coelho released the puck at center-ice. Northeastern was on a power play after refs sent Dartmouth's Kathleen O'Keefe '99 to the penalty box for checking. There was absolutely no pressure on the goalie.
Maybe that was the problem. Because, as the puck glided towards Meyers, she laxly stuck out her stick to stop it. Her slight effort, however, proved not enough. The puck jumped her stick and landed in the cage, giving Dartmouth a one-point advantage in this ECAC contest.
With no other goals throughout the remainder of the game, Dartmouth left Northeastern's Matthews Arena carrying a 2-1 win.
"It's always nice to win against one of the big three like Northeastern," co-Captain Michelle Erickson '96 said. "We started a little slow but we got better by the end. We really held our own against a very physical team."
Coach George Crowe said, "We played up and down all game but we got one break which really helped."
Dartmouth's first period goal came at 12:52 while the Big Green were on a power play. At 11:16, Northeastern's Missi Werner took a two-minute break in the penalty box for checking.
During the ensuing power play, Phoebe Manchester '96 and Sarah Hood '98 teamed up to get the puck to Michelyne Pinard '98. Pinard redirected Hood's pass between the Northeastern posts.
Northeastern tied up the game just over one minute into the second period with a goal from top goal-scorer Danyel Howard.
Dartmouth goalie Sarah Tueting '98 made some key saves directly following this goal as Northeasten returned to the Dartmouth cage for more attacks.
Northwestern dominated most of the second period, keeping the puck in Dartmouth's end for much of the time.
Again, Tueting's denial of some tough shots kept Dartmouth in the game during this lapse of strong play by Dartmouth.
"Tueting came up with some big saves," Crowe said. "She played very well this weekend."
Northeastern pulled Meyers with one minute left to skate six potential scorers. Dartmouth held these six, playing as though Northeastern was on a power play and came out with the win.
"We got some breaks," co-Captain Sarah Howald '96 said. "We don't usually so it was nice to get them. They were a good team to beat."
Sunday saw Dartmouth head to head with ECAC and Ivy opponent Harvard. Tied at two going into the third, Dartmouth took off and outscored the Crimson 2-0 in the final period to pick up the 4-2 win. The win avenged an earlier season loss against Harvard, 2-0.
Crowe called the win "huge," citing the Harvard's affiliation with both the ECAC and the Ivy League. The win improved Dartmouth's record to 6-1 in the ECAC and 4-0 in the Ivy League.
The two teams held each other during the first two periods. Harvard duplicated each Dartmouth goal to keep the score even. Harvard's Lauren Turner answered an early O'Keefe '99 and Sarah Halsell '99 combination.
Dartmouth's second goal came with 11 seconds left in the first. Malaika Little '97 fired the shot with assists from Howald and Hood.
But Harvard was right back at 3:44 into the second with a goal from top-scorer A.J. Mleczko. The score was tied up again.
With 1:29 left in the second period, Pinard appeared to knock the puck past Harvard goalie Jen Bowdoin. But the refs called the goal back, saying it never crossed the line.
Dartmouth put away two more goals in a third period rally, a game-winner and one more insurance goal both from Howald.
"Our third periods have been getting a lot stronger," Crowe said. "Harvard looked tired. Our depth really paid off."
Tomorrow, the Big Green will travel to Middlebury.
