In order for her team to be successful in 2018, Dartmouth coach Danielle Spencer knew she would have to dial back some of her more complex schemes, while ratcheting up the tough love.
That process has proven fruitful through seven games as the Big Green (6-1, 2-0 Ivy League) are on a six-game winning streak following the team’s three-goal win at Princeton. It was Dartmouth’s first victory over the Tigers since 2014, and the first at Princeton since 2008. Before the calendar hits April, her team is nationally ranked, atop the Ivy League standings and in prime position to land a spot in the league tournament and possibly the NCAA Tournament.
“I was tougher this fall in the preseason,” said Spencer, who is in her second year at the helm of the Dartmouth program. “I built trust and relationships [last season]. Now, it’s my duty to hold these players accountable. I’ve been challenging them more and they’ve really responded to that, which is exciting.”
Spencer cited the team’s positive fall campaign, which included nine scrimmages, as the impetus for the team’s spring success. With a 2-0 conference start, the preseason goal of qualifying for the Ivy League tournament, which Dartmouth missed by one spot in 2017, becomes more attainable by the game.
“I can’t act like I’ve had this planned all along,” Spencer said about whether she planned for the leap in year two. “That would be a lie. I am very excited about where we are, but I’m not surprised. It’s not a fluke of where we are.”
Against Princeton, the Big Green, now ranked No. 19, staked a three-goal halftime cushion, extended the lead to seven midway through the second half and held off a 6-1 Tiger run for the 15-12 victory.
Ten of Dartmouth’s 15 goals came off the bench in the form of Elizabeth Mastrio (5), Kierra Sweeney (3) and Sophia Turchetta (2). Mastrio has gotten stronger each game and is second on the squad with 22 tallies. Mastrio picked up Ivy League offensive player of the week honors.
“I’m especially proud of [Elizabeth] because she’s worked hard to improve,” Spencer noted. “In January, she was not the player she is now. It’s exciting to see her really shine through.”
Mastrio’s five-goal effort was key because the Tigers had limited leading scorer Ellie Carson (24 goals) to a lone marker, her lowest scoring output all season.
Crucial to Dartmouth’s ability to score has been its possession game. Midfielder Kathryn Giroux was named defensive player of the week by picking up 26 draw controls in wins over Jacksonville and Princeton. Giroux’s 19 draw wins against the Dolphins set an Ivy League record.
Dartmouth won Saturday’s game with precision offense, a strength that Spencer and her staff saw in an opening day loss to UMass on Feb. 17. Despite the 17-13 loss, it gave Spencer positive vibes moving forward.
“I learned that we were ready to compete with a talented team,” Spencer said. “I can’t stand losing, but I was pleased with our ability to be in the game the whole time. We scored a lot of goals and we were in a good position to produce.”
Spencer and her Big Green team wouldn’t have reason to celebrate if it were not for the tireless, unseen work of her assistants Nicole Price, Nicole Flores and Morgan McDonald.
“Our unsung heroes are our assistant coaches,” Spencer said. “They’re very motivated. They’ve taken pride in helping the players individually. I can’t always be out there [on the field with the players] individually, and I rely on them and I’ve been putting my trust in them.”
Now, attention turns from Princeton to a difficult four-game stretch that features Harvard, No. 10 Penn, No. 2 Boston College and Cornell. Dartmouth has already matched its conference wins from a year ago, and both those 2017 wins came against teams this year’s Big Green have yet to play (Yale and Brown).
“I was confident that we’d be more competitive in conference this year,” said Spencer. “Saturday was a huge win, but we don’t want to be a one-hit wonder either. We’ve only played two games. We have a lot more to come. We took a day to celebrate. We’re back at practice tomorrow, focused and practicing like we haven’t won a game yet.”
Beyond the team’s Ivy League aspirations, there’s legitimate opportunity to gain a spot in the national picture by earning the program’s first NCAA bid since 2013. Currently, the Big Green sit in 20th in the Ratings Percentage Index, which would be firmly on the bubble. Dartmouth already has a win over the No. 11 team in the RPI, with three opportunities to pick up top 20 RPI wins in the next three weeks, which could cement that at-large bid should an Ivy League tournament crown fall through.
“We need to have a clean slate,” Spencer added. “We celebrated the win over Princeton. Now we’re moving on. We have to bring our best effort and not rest on anything.”
THE WEEK THAT WAS
Maryland Spoils Two Unbeaten Seasons
The Terrapins were tasked with a pair of undefeated squads in Penn and James Madison last week and passed both tests well. First, it was a mid-week jaunt to Philadelphia to beat Penn, 13-7, before returning to College Park for a 15-12 win over James Madison. Megan Whittle tallied a combined seven goals, while Kali Hartshorn pulled down 13 draw controls in the two wins. Megan Taylor backstopped the Terps with 25 saves.
Unbeaten Watch
Since Maryland took out a pair of unbeaten teams last weekend, there are just two: No. 2 Boston College (12-0) and No. 1 Stony Brook (8-0). The Seawolves and Eagles lead this week’s Nike/U.S. Lacrosse rankings.
Bay State Shootout
In what might have been the wildest contest of the weekend, UMass used 15 second-half goals to beat in-state foe Harvard, 22-17, on Friday. The Crimson held an 11-7 lead at the break before the Minutewomen unleashed their 15 goals in a 25-minute span. UMass shot 62.5 percent in the second half as a team.
Robert Morris Shocks Louisville 13-12
From the “Did Not See That Coming” department was Robert Morris’ victory over Louisville. Sunday’s 13-12 win was the first for the Colonials over an ACC foe. Sophomore goalie Katelyn Miller made a school-record 18 saves, holding off the hard-charging Cardinals, who scored the final four goals of the game. The two schools had met previously on two occasions, with Louisville taking both contests by a combined score of 29-7.
Ohio State Snaps B1G Skid
Ohio State broke a 10-game skid against Big Ten competition on Saturday by defeating Rutgers, 12-10. The Buckeyes’ streak stretched back to April 2016, which included losing the final three games of the regular season and being upset by the Scarlet Knights in the conference tournament. Last year, Ohio State went 0-6 and missed the tournament. The previous Big Ten win was April 9, 2016, against Penn State. Next up in Big Ten play? Penn State on Saturday.
Doherty Wins 100th at Penn State
Penn State won a crucial overtime game against Johns Hopkins, 13-12, for head coach Missy Doherty’s 100th win at the university. In what could be a bubble battle come May, the Nittany Lions bounced back from a disappointing 13-12 loss to Princeton on Monday. Penn State is 7-4 with the four losses coming by a total of five goals. A difficult stretch is approaching where the Nittany Lions will face Ohio State, Virginia, Northwestern, Maryland and Stony Brook in the next month.
Stony Brook’s Record Watches
Courtney Murphy’s march to the NCAA all-time goal scoring record continues. Her six goals against UMass Lowell pushes her career total to 278, just 12 shy of the record set by Temple’s Gail Cummings (289).
Murphy’s running mate, Kylie Ohlmiller, continued to light the lamp, as she tallied 10 points (4G, 6A) against the River Hawks. Ohlmiller (395 career points) is 50 points short of the NCAA career record (Maryland’s Jen Adams, 445) and 28 assists shy of breaking that career record (Northwestern’s Hannah Nielsen, 224).
MID-WEEK GAMES TO WATCH
Virginia Tech at North Carolina (Wednesday, 5 p.m.)
The Hokies (9-3, 2-0 ACC) head to Chapel Hill in search of its first win over the Tar Heels (6-3, 1-1 ACC) in program history. Virginia Tech is 0-23 against UNC, which includes last years’ 11-6 loss where the Tar Heels staked out a 9-2 halftime lead. That loss was the first of six to close the season and end the Hokies’ year.
Syracuse at Princeton (Thursday, 5 p.m.)
Both teams will look to bounce back from disappointing efforts in the past week. Syracuse (6-5, 0-2 ACC) was upset 11-10 in overtime at Notre Dame on Saturday before falling to Northwestern, 14-10, on Monday. Princeton (4-3, 1-1 Ivy League) has dropped two of its past three games by a combined nine goals.
Colorado at Denver (Thursday, 9 p.m. ET)
Colorado (7-3, 4-1 Pac-12) takes the short journey to Denver (5-3, 1-1 Big East) on Thursday night. It’s the final non-conference game for both sides as they look to bolster their NCAA resume. Both teams are in the Top 20 for RPI (Denver at 14, Colorado at 17).