Who cares if they lost a few games in their non-conference schedule? So what if they lost their Ivy opener to Harvard last weekend? The members of Dartmouth women's basketball team are still looking at the upcoming season with competitive gleams in their eyes, aiming to play with more aggression because of their previous disappointments.
"I think everyone tends to forget that we've dropped our Ivy opener to Harvard the past two seasons and have still gone on to win Ivy championships," tri-captain Samantha Berdinka '01 said. "We're still right in the mix."
After getting through a non-conference schedule that Berdinka calls "the toughest schedule in our program's history," with match-ups against two Top 25 teams including No. 4 Georgia, the team's 1-10 record is certainly discouraging. However, the team still has an optimistic outlook.
"The losses have been tough," says tri-captain Stephanie Kinnear '01, "but the only thing to do is work harder and come together, and that is what this team has been doing."
"We are all a little disappointed with our record, but at the same time, we aren't measuring our success by how many wins we have," Berdinka said. "We have a young team and everyone is still learning."
Weekend Warriors
The team will travel to face Brown and Yale today and tomorrow in a key weekend for the Ivy League. Though Dartmouth and Harvard opened the Ivy season last Saturday, the other teams will have their season openers this week.
Dartmouth is looking at a do-or-die situation. Brown's record is currently 5-7, and Yale's is 4-8. The teams finished with 4-10 and 7-7 league records respectively last season. With two wins this weekend, Dartmouth will show that its current record has nothing to do with how they will fare in the Ivy League.
"We have been working super hard this week and we realize exactly what this weekend means," says Katharine Hanks '03. "We are going to go into it full force and take no prisoners."
The competition for the Ivy League championship title is always a struggle, and this weekend is not the ultimate decider of Dartmouth's hopes. However, the psychological comfort that two wins will bring and the message that will be sent to the other teams is something to fight for.
Pump up the Intensity
The team has seen some standout individual performances this year, such as back-to-back double-doubles by Hanks, a perfect 10-of-10 free throw performance by Katie Skelly '03 and Kinnear's achievement of 10th place for career assists in Dartmouth's record books.
However, with their less-than-enthusiastic game against Harvard, the team seems to lack the togetherness and spirit that was so evident last year. This week's practices were geared toward getting back that spark of energy.
"We have begun to work collectively and have spent a lot of time working on our communication," Hanks said. "We have increased our intensity in all aspects of practice, especially on defense."
The team will need to stay strong this weekend, both in their play and in their mental outlook for the games.
