The team's goals at the beginning of the season included winning the League title and competing for the NCAA championship, co-captain Shannon MacKenzie '11 said.
"First and foremost I wanted the Ivy League title," MacKenzie said. "For me, winning that title meant bringing the Dartmouth lacrosse program back to where it used to be."
In 2010, the women's lacrosse team fell short in League competition, losing to the University of Pennsylvania to settle into a second-place finish among the Ancient Eight. Before this season, Dartmouth had last qualified for the NCAA tournament in 2006, when it reached the national championship game.
The Big Green finished with an 11-5 record and lost just one League game this season, sharing the regular-season conference title with Penn. The team performed well throughout the spring, even against the stiffest competition, compiling a 4-2 record against ranked opponents during the regular season. Dartmouth began the season as 14th in the nation and rose to finish 11th.
"It was absolutely incredible," co-captain Greta Meyer '11 said, referring to the League title win. "On game days banners are hung on fence of the field with the years when Dartmouth lacrosse won the Ivy title. For three years we looked at that banner and wished for our year to be on it."
The Big Green's most impressive victory of the season was a 9-8 overtime upset over Maryland in Dartmouth's final game of the regular season. The win was the team's second in 19 tries against Maryland, which was undefeated and ranked first in the nation at the time of the Big Green's victory. Sarah Parks '12 closed the win with a game-winning goal, garnering WomensLax.com National Player of the Week honors.
Meyer led the Big Green in scoring this season, contributing 34 goals and 14 assists in 16 games. She tied for sixth in the League with 3.00 points per game, while co-captain Kat Collins '11 tied for ninth in the conference with 2.87 points per game.
Collins also stepped up in the clutch for Dartmouth, leading the League with four game-winning goals.
Goalie Kristin Giovanniello '14 helped anchor the team's defense, leading the conference with a 0.505 save percentage. Giovanniello ranked second in the League with 2.38 groundballs per game game and an average of 8.39 goals allowed per game.
"She came in this year as a rookie and had enormous shoes to fill," Meyer said, adding that she believes Giovanniello was the Big Green's most valuable player in the 2011 season. "From the beginning she played like a veteran goalie and I don't think we would have had nearly the success we did this season without her."
Dartmouth's seniors said they believe the team will carry high expectations next season.
"I have so much faith in the lacrosse and leadership capabilities of the 2012 class," MacKenzie said. "Whatever goals they set, I'm sure they will find a way to achieve them and I can't wait to watch the team continue to take steps forward."
Meyer said the team "will only get better" with off-season practice, and aims to place even higher nationally next season.
"We came so close this year and now the players who are returning know what it is like to make the tournament and win an Ivy title," Meyer said. "I can't wait to follow the team next year."
