The women's team (3-0, 0-0 Ivy) encountered its first challenge of the season against the Eagles and the contest got off to a tight start.
After Dartmouth split the first two doubles matches with the Eagles, duo Georgiana Smyser '11 and Sarah Leonard '13 narrowly won the deciding match by a score of 9-7 earning the Big Green the crucial doubles point.
"Winning the doubles point was extremely important, especially with the way our match went down to the wire," Smyser said. "The feeling of being up 1-0 is very helpful when you start the singles matches."
The Big Green quickly finished the job in singles play, notching three easy victories from Molly Scott '11, Ryan Reichel '11 and Smyser, who went a combined 36-10 in their games en route to straight-set match wins.
Leonard added the final point to Dartmouth's score, defeating BC freshman Alex Kelleher in a match time tiebreaker.
The play of the highly competitive Eagle squad resembles the conference talent the Big Green will face later in the season, Smyser said.
"Beating Boston College is huge because this match is always a good indicator of how well we will do in the Ivy schedule later on," she said.
On Sunday, the women returned to the Boss Tennis Center to take on Army, a less daunting opponent. Due to the large size of both teams, the two squads played with an unusual format of six doubles and 12 singles matches to give more athletes an opportunity to compete.
In doubles play, the Big Green secured victories in four of the six matches to earn the points.
Dartmouth was strong in singles play the squad only lost one singles match . Ten Big Green singles players earned straight-set wins, propelling the team to a 13-1 victory.
"The matches this weekend were definitely a big confidence booster," Smyser said. "We know that we have the talent and potential to go far this season."
The men's team (4-1, 0-0 Ivy) also began its weekend with a win, defeating Army 6-1.
The teams split the first two doubles matches, each winning 8-5. The third doubles match went down to the wire, with Dan Freeman '10 and Michael Laser '12 playing their opponents to an 8-8 tie. In the ensuing tiebreak, the duo pulled out an 11-9 win, giving Dartmouth the doubles point and momentum going into the singles portion.
The singles lineup finished the day in dominating fashion winning five of the six matches.
"Playing Army was a lot of fun since we are long-time rivals," Stephen Greif '11 said. "They have been the better team in recent years, so it was great for us to beat them this year."
On Sunday, the men stayed in West Point to take on a tough Binghamton squad, eventually succumbing to the Bearcats by a score of 5-2.
Binghamton excelled in doubles play, icing the Big Green 3-0 to run away with the point.
In singles action, Dartmouth could only muster wins from Greif and Chris Ho '12, sealing the Big Green's first loss of the year.
Greif's win over a challenging opponent was encouraging for the Big Green. Because of his academic schedule, Greif had not played competitive tennis for six months before the winter season.
"Tennis is a timing sport," Greif said. "I'm still trying to find my rhythm and get back to the level I was playing at at the end of last season."
The men will now have a much-needed weekend off, giving several injured players time to recover before competing at the ECAC Championship at Yale University on Feb. 12.
The women's team is back in action on Saturday, however, with home matches against Boston University on Saturday at 1 p.m. and St. John's University on Sunday at 10 a.m. at the Boss Tennis Center.
