The University of New Hampshire snapped the Big Green field hockey team's four-game winning streak on Wednesday, shutting Dartmouth out 4-0.
Head coach Amy Fowler expressed disappointment at the team's play on Wednesday
"I'm bummed we had a no-show and people didn't step up," she said. "It wasn't evidence of how we can play."
The opening whistle gave way to a lackadaisical start by the Dartmouth (5-5, 2-1 Ivy) women.
Dartmouth would have had to be at the top of its game in order to defeat the competitive Wildcats (6-5, 0-1 America East), Fowler said.
"We knew going in that UNH was a good team," she said, adding that she also believed that the combined speed of Dartmouth's forward and middle could have taken advantage of the New Hampshire's slower backs.
The Big Green, however, simply could not connect throughout the game. When the forwards put on appropriate pressure, the middle and back did not step up, and when the middle and back played their game, the forwards did not.
New Hampshire exploited the Big Green's inability to act as a unit to seal the win.
After 10 minutes of scoreless play, New Hampshire broke the ice when senior Meg Shea snagged a rebound from Dartmouth keeper Meagan Vakiener '12 and shot it by her.
Shea struck again a minute later when she combined with Whitney Frates to place another shot in the back of the net.
The second goal seemed to take the wind out of the Big Green's sails.
"That second goal was the killer for confidence in the ending minutes of the first half," Fowler said.
Fowler said she was optimistic at halftime that the women could turn the tide of the game, as they have done successfully in the past.
"I thought we could turn it around," she said. "But I think our second half was even worse."
The Big Green could not prevent the Wildcats from another quick one-two goal progression.
Five minutes into the half, New Hampshire sophomore Kate Collins Smyth drilled a shot at Vakiener, who blocked the shot in one of her nine saves for the game.
A determined Frates, however, beat out a Dartmouth defender for the rebound and flipped it up and over Vakiener to establish a 3-0 lead.
Not long after, Shea, on her way to a hat trick, pushed towards the goal, took a shot that Vakiener blocked, got the rebound and found the net to boost her team to a 4-0 lead. The score was Shea's 32nd in 11 games.
Dartmouth ended the game unable to earn a tally of its own, as the Wildcat keeper, sophomore Katherine Nagengast, blocked all five shots that came her way.
Overall, New Hampshire outshot Dartmouth 22-9 and earned only three corners to the Wildcats' six.
Despite periods of high pressure, good interceptions and chances in the scoring circle, the Big Green simply could not finish.
"My frustration and the team's comes from the fact that we allowed the two goals in each half to come so quickly together," Fowler said.
This weekend the team will play two games in Syracuse, N.Y., a Saturday game against Georgetown University and a Sunday game against Syracuse University. Both games start at 2 p.m.
