Blame it on the rain.
While Hanover enjoyed sunny skies yesterday, the University of North Carolina's Francis E. Henry Stadium -- site of Dartmouth's women's lacrosse contest against the Tar Heels -- was wet and cold. It was a dreary day all around for the Green as they slipped 10-8 in an important late-season matchup.
The UNC win virtually assures the 8-6 Tar Heels, ranked seventh in the nation, a spot in the 12-team NCAA Tournament. Meanwhile, the ninth-ranked Green (10-3, 7-0) might have to win their final game of the year, at Duke on Saturday, to make their way into the postseason.
Following an emotional, last-second win over Princeton to wrap up the Ivy League title last Saturday, the Green had positioned themselves well.
Moving from number 10 to nine in the polls increased hopes of its chances of getting back to the NCAAs for the second year in a row.
But those high hopes are in peril.
Dartmouth led early 1-0 and 2-1, but gave up several quick goals to fall behind 5-2 at the half. The Green would never get back to within a goal, and actually trailed 10-5 with 2:47 remaining in the second half.
Dartmouth's sluggish offense picked up in the next minute and a half, scoring three goals on UNC freshman goalie Melissa Coyne, who was making her first career start in place of the injured senior Debbie Castine.
Carolina recovered to control the ball for the last minute of the game and stopped the Green's scoring spree.
The Tar Heels differed from Princeton as they maintained a balanced offensive attack. Whereas Tigers' stars Cristi Samaras and Tice Burke were the only players to have success against the Green on Saturday, five UNC players collected multiple points.
Kellie Thompson scored four times on Dartmouth goalie Sarah Hughes '02. Julie Kickham, Meghann Mohler and Kristin Off each had two goals.
For Dartmouth, midfielder Liz Merritt '01, one of the heroes of the Princeton game as she scored the winning goal with 13 seconds left, continued where she left off last weekend with three goals.
The Green's most prolific scorer this year, Jacque Weitzel '00, recorded two goals and an assist. Suzy Gibbons '01 had two goals as well, and Emily Fenwick '00 scored Dartmouth's other goal.
Statistically, the two teams were evenly matched. North Carolina took 25 shots on goal to Dartmouth's 20. The Green picked up 36 ground balls to the Tar Heels' 29.
Dartmouth caused nine more turnovers than did North Carolina, but UNC controlled four more draws than did the Green.
The biggest disparity between the teams was on the scoreboard where Dartmouth couldn't keep up with the ACC powerhouse. Until the game's end, the team couldn't match Carolina's scoring output. They couldn't hold UNC's offense under the eight goal mark which Head Coach Amy Patton had said was a number the Green should always be able to win with.
Dartmouth didn't receive any respect from the Chapel Hill community coming into the game -- only 101 spectators showed up to see a battle between two of the top 10 teams in the nation.
Unfortunately, the Big Green did not change too many people's minds with their play from the middle of the first half until the last three minutes.
,StoryDartmouth will have one more chance to prove it belongs among the elite college teams when it faces off against fourth-ranked Duke in Durham, N.C. this Saturday. While Duke is assured of its place in the Tournament, the Green will have the advantage of desperation.
Will it be enough, or will another traditional ACC power rain on Dartmouth's parade?
