This will be Dartmouth's (20-9-4, 13-5-4 ECAC Hockey) third-consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.
In Saturday's semifinal, Dartmouth defeated St. Lawrence University 5-2 in order to reach the final. In the other semi-final matchup, Rensselaer upset top-seed and ECAC Hockey Tournament host Harvard in overtime to set up the title match against Dartmouth.
After the game, Jenna Cunningham '10 said the weekend was a great team effort.
"Everybody on the team knew that if we were going to win the tournament, then we were going to have to play our best hockey," she said. "I think we have made a lot of progress since our series against Colgate [University], and we have realized that if we work hard and stick to our game plan, then our team is deep enough to compete with the best teams in the country."
Sarah Parsons '10 was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after tallying five points in the semifinals and finals, including a goal in each of this weekend's games.
Joining Parsons on the all-tournament team were Shannon Bowman '09 and Julia Bronson '09.
Dartmouth had six different goal scorers in the championship game, highlighting the offensive threat the Big Green has developed into during the last few weeks of the season. In the five games of the ECAC Hockey tournament, Dartmouth scored 26 goals, while only allowing 14.
Dartmouth jumped to a quick lead against Rensselaer (19-14-4, 11-8-3 ECAC Hockey), with Alyssa Boehm '11 putting a pass from Parsons on a 2-on-1 situation past the Rensselaer goalie less than three minutes into the game. It was just Boehm's second goal of the season.
Dartmouth had a number of opportunities to increase its lead during the rest of the first period, falling just short of scoring each time.
After the first intermission, Rensselaer finally got into the game, scoring the team's only goal of the matchup to tie the game at 1-1. The Dartmouth squad pushed past any Rensselaer resistance, with Bowman scoring just 70 seconds later to once again take the lead, and this time for good.
Dartmouth added a third goal just over four minutes later, with Maggie Kennedy '09 tallying the score. As a result, the Big Green enjoyed a comfortable 3-1 lead as the team headed off the ice during the second intermission.
The last 20 minutes of play saw Dartmouth add three more goals, with Cunningham, Parsons and Amanda Trunzo '11 scoring one goal each.
Dartmouth outshot the Engineers in all three periods to post a 34-16 shots-on-goal advantage. Aggressive offense and strong execution would prove to be the difference for the Big Green en route to their 6-1 victory.
Saturday, the Dartmouth women's hockey team earned a convincing victory over No. 8 St. Lawrence, beating the Saints 5-2. This was the only win for the Big Green in three meetings between Dartmouth and St. Lawrence this season.
The Big Green got off to a quick start in its semi-final matchup, scoring three goals in the opening period against St. Lawrence. Reagan Fischer '12, Bowman and Kelly Foley '12 were each credited with a goal in the game's first 20 minutes.
Following a scoreless middle frame, Dartmouth added even more pressure to the beleaguered St. Lawrence, scoring twice to make it 5-0 with only nine minutes remaining in the game. Cunningham and Parsons racked up the third-period goals, with Cunningham scoring on a power-play goal, while Parsons scored when the Big Green was short-handed.
St. Lawrence finally got into the game with just 3:19 remaining, scoring on a power play to make it 5-1, and then scoring a short-handed goal with just 97 seconds left in the game to bring the final score to 5-2.
In goal, Carli Clemis '09 was golden during both games, turning away 26 shots against St. Lawrence before turning away 15 shots in the Rensselaer game. With the two wins this weekend, Clemis became the Dartmouth all-time leader in both post-season wins, with 10, as well as in games played, recording her 97th appearance in net.
Next Saturday Dartmouth plays in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, traveling to Wisconsin to take on the Badgers at 2 p.m.
