"We feel confident about our record so far but not satisfied," goalkeeper Rowan Anders '07 said. "We know that we have the potential to be a top team nationally and are not going to be satisfied with anything less." The Big Green, winner of the 2005 Ivy League title, opened its season competing in tournaments in Hanover, New Haven and Berkeley in head coach Jeff Cook's sixth season at the helm.
Dartmouth opened the new season with a 2-0 win over Binghamton in the adidas/Hypertherm Tournament on Sept. 1. Dartmouth opened scoring with a Mike Ordonez '08 penalty kick that was converted 4:57 into the first period. The second goal came from Daniel Keat '10, who capitalized on a cross by Peter Savidis '06, volleying the ball into the net in the 88th minute.
In its second game of the tournament, the Big Green earned a 0-0 tie with in-state rival, University of New Hampshire. Both teams were unable to score in regulation and extra time, even though Dartmouth had 15 shots to UNH's 13. Ale Frischeisen '08 was named Most Valuable Defender for his defensive performance in the tournament.
"We began the season at home against Binghamton and UNH getting a win and a tie, which was good considering both those teams had three or four games under their belts already, but still we were so close to breaking UNH and going 2-0," said Anders, now the co-owner of the Big Green all-time shutout record (16) after posting three shutouts in six games.
The next tournament for the Big Green was the Yale Classic in New Haven, Conn. Dartmouth started with a goalless draw against Colgate on Sept. 8, as both teams demonstrated solid defensive play. Even though Dartmouth outshot its opponents 13-11, Colgate goalkeeper David Cappuccio was not forced to make a single save during 110 minutes of play, while Anders notched four saves.
In the second game of the tournament for the Big Green, Cook gave his new recruits a chance to shine. Cook first handed Pumi Maqubela '10 his first collegiate start, then fielded Keat for the second consecutive game. However, Dartmouth lost 1-0 to George Mason as the Patriots' Adam Lobene converted a penalty kick in the 33rd minute of play. Dartmouth players were unable to find the net after outshooting their opponents 10-6. The Big Green forwards forced the Patriots' goalkeeper Sean Kelley to make only one save in 90 minutes of play, while Anders had to save his net on two occasions.
In the adidas/Cal Legacy Classic, Dartmouth's third tournament of the season, the Big Green traveled to Berkeley, Calif. In the first game on Sept. 15, Golden Bears midfielder Nick Hatzke scored in the 10th minute to give No. 20 California a 1-0 lead against Dartmouth. The Big Green were able to fight back in the second half, as Ordonez's shot hit the back of the net after a good pass by Keat. However, it was only two minutes later that Cal was able to restore its lead.
In the team's next game of the tournament on Sept. 17, the Big Green bounced back to take a 1-0 win over Stanford. Henderson scored the lone goal at the 76:28 mark as he latched onto a deflected shot and coolly hit the ball past Stanford's goalkeeper.
"Against Stanford we played possibly our best game yet, which is a great sign of our constant improvement and could have won by more goals than one," said Anders, who sat the game out and was replaced by Sean Milligan '09.
As a testament to Dartmouth's successful performance in the adidas/Cal Legacy Classic, three Big Green players were named to the all-tournament team. With solid performances in both games, Brian Lappas '08, Tom Lobben '08 and Craig Henderson '09 all earned the honor.
The Big Green will start its defense of the Ivy crown this Saturday at home against co-champion Brown. Anders hopes that the match will be the first step toward repeating last season's success, and making even greater strides.
"We are concentrating on our season one game at a time and will accept nothing less than another Ivy League championship. Personally, I would like to defy our recent history and win some NCAA Tournament games, but for now I'll settle with a win against Brown this weekend."
Saturday's game will start at 3 p.m. on Chase Field.
