The Dartmouth water polo team came away with a disappointing fourth place finish at the Ivy League tournament last weekend and now will be looking to rebound, as the Big Green prepare for the National Championships this weekend.
"Overall, it was good to play against varsity teams to prepare for Nationals," Kevin O'Neil '97 said. "It helps us to raise our level of play, though we could have done better. Hopefully we can learn some things from them and see how we can improve this week in practice."
At the Ivy League Championships, the team opened play against Princeton. The Big Green stayed with Princeton early, trailing only 5-4 at the end of the first quarter, but the Tigers quickly moved ahead in the second quarter in route to a 16-7 victory. Brent Boehlert '98 led the Big Green with three points on two goals and Jon Kenyon '97 scored two points on one goal.
In their next match, the Big Green battled Yale, a team they dominated earlier in the season. But the Bulldogs came out strong, moving into the lead with 4:24 to play in the first quarter behind a two point goal. Yale led 5-4 after the first quarter. Dartmouth rallied behind two goals by Kenny Kriwanek '99 in the second quarter, tying the score 7-7 at the half.
In the second half, Kriwanek jump started the Dartmouth offense again, scoring his third goal of the game 33 seconds into the third quarter. Another goal by Kriwanek, two goals by Boehlert and another by Zac Holt '98 extended the Dartmouth lead to 14-9. The fourth quarter was all Kenyon as he scored four of his seven points in route to a 20-11 Dartmouth victory.
Following the win, The Big Green played Brown, arguably the top program in the Ivy League. Dartmouth jumped out to an early lead behind a goal by Boehlert, but the lead was short lived as Brown tied the score 65 seconds later and added another goal a minute later to take the lead.
The Big Green ended the first quarter with a 4-2 deficit. Kenyon pulled the Big Green within one to open the second quarter, before Brown extended its lead to 8-4 going into the half-time break.
The second half was dominated by the Brown Bears who had a ten point lead during the fourth quarter before Howie Silverman '97 and Nick Gansner '97 scored goals to bring the Big Green within seven. The final score was 15-8.
The Big Green heads to the National Water Polo Club Championships this weekend. They will face the University of Maryland this Friday night in their first round match. The team's confidence level is high, and the Big Green are looking to finish among the top four teams.
