If nothing else, tomorrow's matchup with No. 2 Virginia in Charlottesville should conjure up memories of just how close the Big Green women's lacrosse team came to earning a berth in the national championship game last year.
Trailing 6-5 midway through the second half of the NCAA semifinal against Virginia, Kate Graw '00 netted what appeared to be the equalizing goal. But the Big Green's celebration was short-lived as the goal was called back because of a dangerous stick call on Graw, and Dartmouth went on to lose, 10-7. Apparently, Graw and her teammates don't have short memories of coming up just short against the Cavaliers.
It was Graw's career-high six goal effort which sparked Dartmouth to a 20-7 victory over No. 7 Loyola on Wednesday and earned the Big Green another shot at Virginia. But even if the uniforms and the school might be the same, the players are not.
"These are not the same two teams that met last year," Head Coach Amy Patton said. "Virginia lost two All-Americans from their team last year, but most of our players took part in last year's contest. But they are always a tough, scrappy team."
Should Dartmouth come out and play the way they did against Loyola, being scrappy might not be enough for the Cavaliers. The 20 goals scored by the Big Green are the second-most goals scored all time in the NCAA Tournament, second only to the 23 Penn State scored Tuesday afternoon against West Chester. Although it was the third time Dartmouth had scored 20 goals this year, it was the first time they had pulled the feat against a winning team.
"I've been waiting for this game all year," Patton said. "I knew we were capable of playing that well, but we hadn't put it together in one game like we did against Loyola. It was a pleasure to sit and watch them play."
If there is one thing that defines Virginia women's lacrosse, it's defense. Last year, the Cavaliers gave up fewer than six goals a game, a number that rose only slightly this season to 7.17, eighth best in the country. But Patton is hopeful that the Orange Crush, which includes two All-Americans and one U.S. National team player, won't have as much of an effect on the Big Green as they did last in last year's semifinal.
"Virginia plays a real aggressive, in-your-face defense and I think that took our forwards off their game last year," Patton said. "But now our defenders play that same style, so our forwards see that kind of play every practice. As a result, we've played with a lot more confidence against strong defenses this year."
In fact, Dartmouth's defense has been stingier than Virginia this season, giving up almost half a goal game less than the Cavaliers. But the real difference between the teams is on offense. The Big Green is 10th in the nation in scoring while Virginia isn't even ranked in the top 20.
But Virginia is not without scoring threats. Led by midfielder Samm Taylor, All-American Mia Mooney and 1998 ACC Rookie of the Year Mills Hook, three Cavaliers posted at least 20 goals on the season. Still, the loss of 1998 ACC Player of the Year Peggy Boutillier has made Virginia's offense more suspect and the squad more vulnerable than they were a year ago.
"This year's tournament is more wide open than it has ever been," Patton said. "With the exception of Maryland, all of the teams had some losses and every team had a couple of big wins. But the top teams have not been as consistent as they were a year ago."
Two of Virginia's five defeats were home losses to Loyola and Princeton, the only two Top 10 teams that Dartmouth beat this year. Two weeks ago, Loyola scored with 10 minutes left to edge Virginia 10-9, while Princeton needed overtime to grab a 9-8 victory early in the season. Overall, the Big Green were 2-4 against Top 10 teams this season, with three of those losses coming to other ACC teams.
Virginia benefited from having a first-round bye and should be fresher than the Big Green. Dartmouth will be making their second trip south in four days, a factor which worries Patton.
"We've had to do a lot of traveling and I'm worried how that will affect us. Combined with midterms, the players are pretty tired."
The scheduling of this game for Saturday was not kind to Dartmouth in another manner. The Cavaliers are 1-2 on May 9, which is Sunday, and have never won a home game on that date. But the Big Green will be forced to earn their second trip to the NCAA Final Four in as many years in another fashion.
"We just need to worry about ourselves," Patton said. "I've found when we've concentrated on playing our best and don't worry about the other team, we play better. All the pressure is on Virginia to win at home, being the No. 2 seed. So we should come out relaxed and just try to have fun."
