With Burnham Field at near-capacity, Saturday night was one to remember. The Dartmouth men’s soccer team delivered a 3-1 upset over the No. 18-ranked Vermont Catamounts, handing the Catamounts their first regular season loss in 693 days.
It was the Big Green’s first win over a nationally-ranked opponent since beating the New Hampshire Wildcats in 2015. Prior to the match, Vermont had not trailed an opponent for a single minute of the 2026 season. That streak lasted just four-and-a-half minutes against the Big Green.
Dartmouth started the game dominant from the opening whistle, with a quick break providing Trenton Blake ’27 a chance at goal. His left-foot shot was turned away by Vermont’s 6-foot-6 goalkeeper Niklas Herceg, but it fell perfectly to Ben Bilden ’29, who wasted no time giving the Big Green an early lead and shifting momentum in the home team’s favor.
For senior Will Lulka ’27, the confidence in the group was clear from the moment the team stepped onto the field. His first game at Burnham Field was also against Vermont, and he said this one felt very different.
“This game felt like night-and-day compared to that match-up four years ago,” Lulka said. “Last Saturday the entire team and coaching staff knew that we were competing to win the game when we walked onto the field.”
Although the visitors led in number of shots throughout the first half, they could not find the equalizer they needed as the half wore on. In the 37th minute, a tricky ball played into Vermont’s box ended up bouncing off a defender and was guided into goal thanks to a header from Eidur Baldvinsson ’28, giving the Big Green an unexpected 2-0 lead.
However, just a minute later, the Catamounts found themselves on a swift offensive fast break, and forward Philipp Schmidtke cut the deficit in half with a left-foot strike that found the corner of the net. The score was 2-1 as both teams walked off the field for half-time.
Dartmouth had no interest in simply sitting back and protecting the lead.
“The overall mindset was not to sit in and defend but instead continue to play our game,” Noah Sams ’29 said.
The Catamounts came into the second half firing on all cylinders. Vermont heavily controlled possession and pushed for an equalizer. They ultimately outshot the Big Green 17-10 on the night and earned a staggering 10 corner kicks to Dartmouth’s three.
However, they were unable to break through the Dartmouth defense and goalkeeper T.J. Jeffreys ’29. Jeffreys put together a composed performance between the sticks, denying Vermont time and time again en route to a season-high five saves.
The match remained tense for most of the remainder of the half. With 20 minutes left on the clock, Blake found himself one-on-one with Herceg. The Catamounts keeper made a point-blank save, making the Big Green keep fighting for another goal.
Dartmouth found the back of the net for the third time when Blake lofted a ball above the Vermont defense and found first-year forward Bo Robbins ’30 just outside the penalty box. Robbins’s first collegiate goal sent the Burnham Field crowd into pandemonium and pushed the lead to 3-1 with just nine minutes remaining.
It was mostly smooth sailing for the home team after their third goal, as Vermont lost their second half momentum, and the Big Green managed to secure a victory. Sams credited the home crowd for helping his team get there.
“In the second half, we all stayed together as a team, and with the help of the community and everyone cheering us on, we had the support to close the game out,” he said.
Head coach Connor Klekota said the performance reflects a group that is buying into the details.
“It shows that the group is coming together and realizing the importance of the little things it takes to have a chance to be successful when every little test comes up,” Klekota said. “We call games tests here, and … any win is just evidence that you were probably doing things right that week.”
The Big Green must now shift their focus to the future as the season continues. Burnham Field will host the Princeton Tigers on Saturday at 6 p.m. Lulka said the team knows the work isn’t done.
“It’s hard to win a ranked game but it’s even harder to win two in a row,” he said. “Families, students and fans don’t come to our games to see us win one big game a season, they come to see us do it every weekend.”
