Memorial Field has traditionally been the first, and oftentimes only, stop for a Big Green sports fan on homecoming weekend. Some freshmen go to watch their first football game, some freshmen just go to rush the field, and many upperclassmen go to watch the freshman rush the field. While football is a Homecoming staple, Dartmouth's biggest athletic weekend of the fall has much more to offer than just pigskin.
The men's and women's varsity soccer teams will be in action against the University of Pennsylvania on Sunday at Chase field at noon and 2:30 p.m. respectively.
Fans who just cannot wait until the weekend to get their sports fill should check out the volleyball team, who will take on Brown University Friday evening at 6 p.m. before battling Yale Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. Both games will be played in Leede Arena.
Enthusiasts of football-style excitement should not feel limited on Saturday, when both the men's and women's club rugby teams will be in action. Men's a-side rugby will kick off the festivities at Brophy field at 10:30 a.m. against Harvard, with men's b-side and women's games against Williams to follow.
Rugby player Lee Cooper '09 expressed excitement over this weekend's matches.
"I respect the American tradition of football homecoming, but I hope that the student body comes out to see the embodiment of excitement and success that is Dartmouth rugby," he said.
Women's Soccer is the only varsity team playing this weekend to sport a winning record. At 6-3-1, the women's squad has positioned itself to match, if not surpass, last year's record of 12-5-1, the program's third best season in its history.
Forward Monica Martin de Bustamante '08, mid-fielder and forward Sarah Johnson '07 and goalkeeper Amanda Webb '08 headline the team's roster. De Bustamente and Johnson lead the Big Green's offensive attack with three and two goals respectively. On the other side of the field, Webb has dominated her post in front of the net, leading the Ivy League with a .75 goals against average, a .778 save percentage and four shutouts, allowing only six goals in 10 games.
To stay undefeated in the Ivy League, the Dartmouth women will have to get past a very strong Penn team (6-2-1, 1-1-0). One key to victory will be to limit Penn forward Jessica Fuccello '10, who has three goals and four assists on the season and was last week's Ivy League Rookie of the Week.
"Pretty much to win the Ivies you have to win every game," Webb said. "It's always very competitive. If you drop one game you can be out of it."
Webb acknowledged the hype football gets during homecoming weekend as she praised Dartmouth's strong football tradition and alumni support, but also spoke to the relative importance of the games to the teams' seasons.
"Since it's Ivy, I think for us it's more important for our ranking and standing to go out and win on homecoming weekend."
The men's team, with a record of 2-5-3, and 0-1-1 in the Ivy League, is in the midst of a disappointing campaign following last year's Ivy League championship. The emergence of freshman phenom Daniel Keat '10 is one bright spot amidst a lackluster season; he has scored three of the team's six total goals.
A victory this weekend will be no easy feat, as Penn's men's squad -- 6-2-0 overall, 2-0-0 in the Ivy's -- has established itself as an offensive powerhouse with 17 goals this year. Spearheading Penn's attack are Mike Klein '09 and Ryan Tracy '07, who have combined for seven goals and 20 total points -- a formidable duo for the Dartmouth team.
The women's volleyball team looks to get the most out of homecoming weekend, though. With a record of 6-6, and 0-2 in Ivy League play, the matches against Brown and Yale fall towards the front of a 12-game conference run to close out the season.
Sensational outside hitter Jess Thomas '09 has headed the charge for the Big Green this season, leading the team on both sides of the action with 170 kills and 156 digs. She is optimistic about the games this weekend.
"I think it's more exciting," Thomas said of playing during the festive weekend. "Last year we had a pretty good turnout. The more people that are there, the more exciting it is. I do wish we got more support. I think people would be surprised at how fun volleyball games are if they came."
The level of competition will increase from Friday to Saturday. The Brown Bears, at 4-10 and 0-2 in the conference, will look to Julie Mandolini-Trummel '08, a first team All-Ivy selection last year, and Rikki Baldwin '07 for leadership.
Yale, at 7-4 overall, is currently atop the Ivy standings with a 2-0 in conference mark. Captain Anja Perlebach '07, who is third in the Ivy League with 4.33 digs per game, anchors the Bulldogs. A homecoming sweep could put the Big Green in a position to make a run at the Ivy League Championship.
All records and statistics through Oct. 5, 2006.
