Even among the list of successful Big Green athletes from the Class of 2000, one team stands out as the brightest. The players on the Dartmouth women's lacrosse team -- Melissa Frazier '00, Kate Graw '00, Jacque Weitzel '00 and Whitney Hale '00 " will be remembered as the one of the most successful Dartmouth classes for any sport in school history.
Their impressive list of trophies includes four Ivy League titles with an impeccable 26-1 Ivy League record and three NCAA post-season tournament appearances. The Big Green women's overall record extends to 45-17 over the four seasons, while beating perennial Ivy rival Princeton in all four matches. Their lone Ivy loss came in their first season against Brown in a 9-8 heartbreaker on April 19, 1997.
In 1998 and 1999, the team rallied to second round of the NCAA Tournaments. This season, despite being ranked No. 2 at one point and having a 10-game winning streak, the injury-ridden Big Green ran out of gas at the end of the season and were knocked out of the playoffs by Duke in a 7-6 defeat. Graw and Frazier didn't play in the game against the Blue Devils.
Jacque Weitzel '00
Nobody can talk about Dartmouth lacrosse without mentioning the name of Jacque Weitzel. The success of the team coincided with an amazing career of this Annapolis native.
Denying her individual success, Weitzel said, "Our whole attack works well together, it isn't like one person runs it down the field and scores. Most of our goals are assisted which shows how team-oriented we are."
But there is no question that she is a great athlete. In fact, she might be the most successful athlete in recent Ivy League history.
To illustrate her explosiveness, Weitzel has scored eight goals against Harvard this season, while she has two seven-goal games, three six-goal games and nine five-goal games over the four years.
As an attacker, Weitzel immediately made impact in the collegiate lacrosse games as she scored 22 goals and 5 assists in her first season and was ranked third in points (27) on the team.
But it was her sophomore season that she began to dominate Ivy League lacrosse. For the next three seasons, in which Dartmouth had a perfect 21-0 Ivy record, Weitzel led the Big Green in goals and points, and by a lot. In just her second season, the attacker collected 62 goals and 10 assists (72 points). She kept her domination her junior year with 48 goals and 22 assets (70 points) and finally capped the college career this season with career-high 67 goals and 12 assists (79 points).
With these impressive numbers on the field, Weitzel was soon recognized as one of the best players in college lacrosse. The Garrison Forest High School graduate was selected on first-team All-America for the past three years as well as for first-team All-Ivy squad.
If that's not impressive enough, Weitzel holds the Ivy League's all-time and single-season goals and points records. She also surpassed school records held by Lauren Holleran '95 this season in all-time and single-season goals and points. Weitzel also finished third in career assets.
Kate Graw '00
Sometimes hidden behind Weitzel's eye-catching records, Graw has steadily improved her game and became the essential piece of the Big Green squad.
As an offensive defenseman, Graw was second behind Weitzel in scoring in the past two seasons. This season, she served as a co-captain and notched career-high 37 goals and 23 assists (60 points) and was selected as first-team All-America and first-team All-Ivy.
Last year, the Davidsonville, Md. naive netted 36 goals and 16 assists (52 points) as a second-team All-America and first-team All-Ivy. Graw scored 29 points in her second season and she had 16 points as a freshman.
After clinching her fourth straight Ivy title, Graw said, "Having won the title for four years in a row is a real dream come true."
Graw is a three-time All-Ivy first-team member as well as first-team All-America this season and second-team All-America for the past two seasons.
Melissa Frazier '00
Frazier, a midfielder, ended her season prematurely this season due to an injury, but she had been the backbone of Dartmouth defense. The Berwyn, Pa. native was a first-team All-America and first-team All Ivy during her sophomore and junior seasons. As this year's co-captain, she has recorded 34 goals and 16 assists in four years.
Whitney Hale '00
After starting just four games her first year, Hale provided big presence in the defensive end as she started in almost all games for the last three seasons. The Syracuse native has played all 16 games this season and last season, while making 13 appearances in her sophomore year.
Emily Fenwich '00 recorded 31, 38 and 43 points respectively in her first three seasons. Libby Huffman '00 was on the team for a year.