In the end, the Demon Deacons showed Dartmouth why they deserved their ranking by downing the Big Green 8-0 at Kentner Stadium.
The loss was Dartmouth's third in a row since recording back-to-back victories against the University of Pennsylvania and the University of New Hampshire more than two weeks ago. Dartmouth has scored one goal or fewer in eight of 11 games this season.
Minou Gimbrere scored Wake Forest's first goal less than two minutes into the contest. Gimbrere received a pass from teammate Tracey Scott and drove it past Dartmouth goalie Ashley Heist '08 to record her first career goal.
Two minutes later, the Demon Deacons' Christine Suggs added to the Wake Forest lead as she smashed a shot low in the net. Suggs went on to score another goal in the 21st minute off of a rebound in front of the Dartmouth net.
However, the real hero for Wake Forest was junior Chelsea Cipriani, who recorded the first goal of her eventual hat trick with two minutes remaining in the first half. Cipriani received the pass from Scott and then knocked in a reversed stick shot past Heist.
Cipriani scored her second goal in the second half with a goal off one of the Deacons' eight penalty corners. Wake Forest senior defender Jamie Whitten added to the Deacon lead just one minute later.
Cipriani's final goal came in the 46th minute. Demon Deacons' junior midfielder Lauren Love notched the final goal of the contest at the 66th minute, 20 minutes after Cipriani's third goal.
Wake Forest was relentless with its shot attempts as Heist recorded 15 saves during her stay in the net. Jordan Sedlacek '09 recorded three saves for the Big Green.
The Demon Deacons' 17-2 shooting advantage in the first half was a testament to the offensive abilities of the nation's second-ranked team.
"Being able to play the No. 2 team in the country was a great experience for our team," said Whitney Waugh '08. "We learned a lot from the experience and are excited to apply the things we learned in our upcoming games. It was a great opportunity to get to play against the best girls in the country."
Dartmouth's top scorer Lizzie Bildner '08, currently tied for the Ivy League lead in goals (seven), provided two of Dartmouth's shots on goal as the staunch Wake Forest defense kept the Big Green at bay. For the game, the Demon Deacons outshot the Big Green 34-4. Waugh and Chelsea Dodds '10 provided the rest of Dartmouth's offense with a shot on goal each.
Dartmouth will return to the field this Wednesday, Oct. 18, as the Big Green takes on the University of Vermont Catamounts at Scully-Fahey Field.
