Big Green captain and star No. 1 Julia Drury '06 took part in what may have been the most enthralling match of the weekend, defeating Bowdoin No. 1 and former All-American Niki Clement in a tight match that went down to the fifth game. However, in the end it was Drury who was able to maintain her excellent record at No. 1.
"The women were not really tested," head coach John Power said. After outscoring opponents by a combined tally of 35-1, that's probably an understatement.
Drury was looking forward to the match against Clement, against whom she has competed for over six years.
"My match against Niki Clement was extremely difficult mentally and physically," she said. "She is an amazing athlete and is one of my favorite opponents because I always have great matches against her and have the greatest respect for her on and off the court."
Drury was quick to praise the other members of her team for the triumph over Clement. "In the end I think the reason I won the match is because I am fortunate enough to have wonderful training partners in all of the women on the Dartmouth team. They push me very hard in practices and challenge matches," she said.
This weekend, Drury can look forward to taking on the potent Princeton and University of Pennsylvania teams. The UPenn match is especially important to Drury, as her sister plays for the Quakers.
According to Power, the weekend is a big one for the Big Green. "The team anxiously awaits this weekend when they will have a go at Princeton and Penn, two teams who are ranked just ahead," Power said.
The men "were almost as dominating" last weekend, Power said. The team (13-4, 2-2 Ivy) squeaked by Bates 6-3, with a surprise coming at No. 1, as freshman sensation Andrew Boumford '09 fell to Bates No. 1 Ricky Weisskopf 3-0. However, the men in green steamrolled the rest of the competition, defeating Colby, Bowdoin and Brown by a combined score of 26-1.
The play of Billy "Skateboard" Nix '07 provided a bright spot for the Big Green. Nix stepped in this weekend for the injured Eben Clattenburg '09. Todd Wood '07and Ted Newhouse '09 also registered strong performances.
"Playing four matches in a weekend is always tough, but we brought out the A game and came away with four convincing wins," Wood said of this weekend's action. "The highlight was dominating the Brown team, and shutting up their drunken fans with our superior play. This win solidified our position in the top eight of the country."
The Big Green men will face a stiff challenge next weekend from Ivy rivals Princeton and Penn, but with the imminent return of Clattenburg, Heath believes Dartmouth will definitely be "bolstered."
If both the men and women can continue their recent level of stellar play, Newhouse will be able to describe the weekend action with the same word he used to characterize last weekend's performance: "sick."
