The Dartmouth Men's Lacrosse team again proved themselves a force to be reckoned with in the Ivy League on Wednesday as they staged a dramatic comeback away from home in defeating the Yale Bulldogs 9-8. Fueled by the hot hand of senior captain Scott Roslyn, the Big Green scoring machine lit up the scoreboard eight times in the second half to erase a daunting four-goal deficit. The win marks the team's first against Yale since 1995, the last time Dartmouth also won on the road in New Haven.
The game began on a promising note for the laxers, as freshman midfielder Gavin Phillips darted through a narrow gap in the Bulldog defense and slipped his first college career goal past Yale keeper Roy Skeen, giving the Big Green a 1-0 opening advantage with 10:21 left in the first period of play.
However, the remainder of the first half was dictated by Yale's offense, as the boys from New Haven notched four unanswered goals before halftime. Dartmouth's normally potent offense seemed to stagger after Phillips' netter, as Yale controlled both the time of possession and the scoring pace until a halftime break that couldn't come quick enough for the Big Green.
After regrouping at the half, Dartmouth found itself in a 5-1 hole, as Yale scored with just over one minute into the third quarter. Hungry for revenge, attackman Brandon Wright '05 used his dominating 6'4" frame to overwhelm a swarming Bulldog D and line a shot past Skeen, re-igniting the Dartmouth offense for a spectacular comeback for the rest of the game.
The second half belonged primarily to the quick stick and deft maneuvering of Roslyn, whose four goals, including the game winner, carried the Big Green to victory. Roslyn notched the game-tying and go-ahead scores early in the fourth quarter, then received offensive help from freshman attackman Ryan Danehy who rifled two long-range goals in the retaliation against Yale, the second of which broke a 7-7 tie with only 37 seconds left in the game.
The final minute of the game was nothing short of a thriller. Dartmouth's one point advantage was erased just moments later by Yale's Pat Moylan, who evened the score at eight with a mere 10 seconds left in regulation. On the ensuing face-off, senior co-captain Justin Weinstein, whose two assists helped guide the comeback, valiantly won a fierce battle for possession and sped up-field into the teeth of the Yale defense.
Weinstein led the final lightning-strike attack by dishing the ball to Tom Daniels '04, who then set-up a streaking Roslyn in front of the Yale goal for the game-winning score with just four ticks remaining on the clock. The game-winner tied Roslyn's season-best performance of four goals that he scored against Quinnipiac, and tallied the third assist for Daniels in the game.
Also instrumental in the team's second Ivy League victory was the phenomenal play of sophomore goalie Andrew Goldstein. His 19 saves totalled a career best and fellow teammate Weinstein commented that, "[Goldstein's] amazing play really kept us in the game."
Goldstein was quick to commend the stellar execution by his peers as well, "The offensive guys did a great job controlling the ball and obviously eight goals in a half against a team like Yale is tremendous." He continued the acclamation, saying, "on the defensive end, guys were making plays all over the place and really playing smart team defense."
The offensive star of the game, Roslyn, was equally generous in his praise of the entire team's performance. "Everyone gave an unbelievable effort today," he said, "and guys really pulled through when we needed it -- it was definitely a victory that wouldn't have happened without everyone contributing. That's what we've been about all season and that really came out on Wednesday. I'm just really proud of these guys."
All in all, the win couldn't have come at a better time for the laxers, as they hoped to rebound from a tough loss at the hands of an 11th ranked Cornell squad last weekend in Hanover. Now in the middle of an Ivy League gauntlet remaining on its schedule, the team looks to further the impressive 8-2 record it now holds and potentially break into the national rankings by week's end. A come-from-behind win over 20th ranked Yale has certainly helped in that effort. "When we found ourselves down, we knew we weren't out, and we responded," Goldstein said.
Adding to the team's high hopes is the anticipated return of super frosh Jamie Coffin, whose 35 points not only lead the team, but also place him among the top five all-time freshman performances. With the offense again firing on all cylinders and Coffin's projected arrival back in the line-up from a broken wrist injury, the Big Green presents itself as a most formidable opponent to the Ivy League adversaries it has yet to face. The Brown Bears will offer the next test for the laxers this Saturday afternoon, when they come to Scully-Fahey field for a 1 p.m. battle.
