When looking at the season statistics, one can easily wonder how it is that the Big Green women's lacrosse team has anything to prove. Through five games this season, head coach Amy Patton's squad has outshot its opponents by a 151-69 margin, while enjoying a 84-35 caused turnovers differential, and a 174-76 advantage in ground balls. Co-captain Jen Newitt '02 (a preseason All-America selection by "Lacrosse" magazine) leads the Ivy League in scoring with 22 points (19g, 3a) and teammate Whitney Jamison '03 isn't far behind with 7 goals and a team-high 10 assists (despite sitting out the team's season-opener against UNH).
After dropping from No. 9 to No. 12 in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches' Association poll following last Saturday's 9-6 upset loss to No. 13 Yale, the Big Green women (3-2, 1-1 Ivy) will have plenty to prove when they take the field on Saturday against Brown (2-2, 0-0 Ivy) for the first of three consecutive road games. With five Ancient Eight games remaining, including road dates at No. 2 Princeton and No. 9 Cornell and only one home Ivy contest left (April 13 against Pennsylvania), a win at Brown's Stevenson Field is a necessity in Dartmouth's quest for a sixth consecutive Ivy League title.
The unranked Bears have played fairly well so far this year, with wins over Stanford and Colgate, and a near upset of No. 10 Vanderbilt (in which Brown eventually fell, 13-12). Against common opponents, the Bears and the Big Green have had similar results, with both teams defeating Colgate, but losing to defending national champion No. 7 Maryland. According to co-captain Katy Cuneo '02, the Green are well aware of the quality of the Brown team that awaits them.
"We're really excited to play Brown," Cuneo said.
"The Ivy League has improved dramatically, so this will be a great game. We're really trying to take things in stride -- one game at a time. We haven't been looking past Brown and we won't until Sunday. The team looks great, though, and we finally have a healthy roster again."
With their healthy roster, Dartmouth will look for continued strong play from Newitt, Jamison, and Allison Moulin '02 (7g, 5a) on offense, and continued excellence from a defense that averages 16.8 caused turnovers a game. This past Sunday marked Dartmouth's peak defensive performance, holding Columbia to a single goal.
On the other side, sophomore attacker Christine Anneberg leads Brown with 12 goals and 5 assists, while 2001 All-American honorable mention Niki Caggiano will start in goal for the Bears. Caggiano has struggled early on this season, allowing an average of 12.07 goals per game. The Big Green offense will be looking to prolong her struggle in order to come away with a big win in Providence.
With two more critical away games before returning to the friendly atmosphere of Sculley-Fahey Field, including a matchup with Cornell on April 6, the Green looks to beat the Bears and kick off the three game stretch in winning fashion.
