"Obviously we are disappointed with the outcome of the game," goalie Tatiana Saunders '15 said. "It was an important game and we suffered a tough loss. Despite the outcome, we are going to remain positive and continue to work hard everyday. We have a good opportunity against Brown to regain our momentum back."
The first half was a defensive battle as neither team was able to register a shot on goal. The Big Green put three shots, including two in the final six minutes, towards the net, but co-captain Emma Brush '13 could do nothing but watch them sail over and wide of the cage. The Big Green also held a 3-1 advantage in corner kicks over the home Quakers, but could not find the net accurately.
"We dominated Penn in the first half," co-captain Kim Rose '13 said. "We created a lot of opportunities and possessed the ball around them. I was really confident that we were going to put one of our chances away."
Both offenses, however, were able to create more opportunities in the second half. The teams combined for 11 shots, with the visitors taking the advantage 7-4. All of Penn's shots found the cage while only three of Dartmouth's did. The increase in accuracy meant that goalie Saunders was tested consistently by a Penn offense that has outscored opponents 22-5 this season, including three 4-0 wins. The junior finished the game with three saves, as did Penn sophomore netminder Kalijah Terilli.
"The team did well in the air and in combining passes and creating chances," Brush said. "I think we can improve how we come out in the second half. We start games really strong but sometimes struggle with momentum in the second half. That was a game-changer for us against Penn."
The Quakers dictated the pace of the game in the early minutes of the second half, notching four shots to Dartmouth's one. Saunders made a save in the 53rd minute, but the Big Green failed to clear the ball and sustain pressure in the Penn half of the field, as the home team was soon back on the attack.
At the 56:32 mark, sophomore Erin Mikolai took a shot from the left side of the box. Saunders dove, punching the low ball away. Unfortunately for the Big Green, however, the ball bounced right to junior Megan York, who chipped the ball into the top of the open net for the game's only goal.
"In the second half, we went through a 15-minute lull and they were able to capitalize," Rose said. "In the future, we need to ride out those low periods and prevent the other team from creating good chances."
Dartmouth responded with five shots in the last 30 minutes, but was unfortunately unable to put one past Terilli. Corey Delaney '16, Jill Dayneka '16 and Hayley Snyder '17 registered shots on goal in the 65th, 67th and 79th minutes respectively. Jackie Friedman '16 and Dayneka also registered shots that were not on net. Perhaps the best scoring chance came in the 70th minute, when Holly Patterson '17 teed one up from an opening near the top of the box. The freshman's shot was blocked by a defender as it was trailing away from Terilli towards the lower right-hand corner.
"After we got scored on, we responded really well," Rose said. "We played a more attacking style and create more opportunities. I think we needed to have a little more composure in front of net, and a little more desire to sacrifice our bodies in the box on our corner kicks."
The Big Green were negatively impacted by Brush's early departure from the game in the 49th minute.
The loss dropped the Big Green into a tie with Yale University for fourth place in the Ivy League, two games behind first-place Harvard University. The team's final three Ivy League games are against Cornell University, currently 1-3 in the league, the Crimson (8-3-2, 4-0 Ivy) and Columbia University, who is winless through four games in the Ancient Eight.
The Big Green will host Brown University, who defeated the Big Green 1-0 in Providence, R.I., earlier this season, in a non-conference game on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Hanover.
Rose is a former contributor to The Dartmouth.
