Dartmouth's Grant Opperman. (Valley News - Tris Wykes)
Dartmouth's Grant Opperman. (Valley News - Tris Wykes)

Providence, r.i. — Senior Grant Opperman scored his first career hat trick, and the Dartmouth College men’s hockey team erased an early two-goal deficit to defeat Brown, 5-4, on Friday night at Meehan Auditorium.

Opperman’s night came after the Bears (4-20-2, 3-15-1 ECAC Hockey) scored twice in the opening 3:21 from Tyler Bird and Sam Lafferty. Opperman followed with two goals in the first period and another in the second.

For just the third time in his career, Opperman found the back of the net two or more times in a game and for the second instance, it came at the expense of the Bears (Nov. 15, 2014). His hat trick was the first by a Big Green player this season and the first since Brad Schierhorn scored all three in an overtime Game 1 win against Colgate in last season’s first round.

Junior Corey Kalk and senior Troy Crema added the other two tallies for Dartmouth (10-13-3, 7-10-2). Crema’s power-play goal with 10:47 remaining gave Dartmouth a 5-2 lead, but proved to be the game winner as the Bears’ Brent Beaudoin scored twice in the final minutes to bring the home team to within one.

But timely saves from Dartmouth goalie Devin Buffalo and a puck that hit the crossbar and ricocheted out as time expired helped Dartmouth to a season split with Brown.

Crema and Kalk both finished the night with a goal and an assist.

In all, Dartmouth outshot Brown, 44-28, posting double-digits in shots on goal each period.

Brown’s Gavin Nieto turned aside 23 shots in just over 32 minutes of action, before giving way to Tim Ernst who made 16.

The Big Green visits Yale’s Ingalls Rink tonight. It’s the first game in New Haven since last season’s ECAC quarterfinals sweep of the Bulldogs.

Women’s Hockey

Brown 5, Dartmouth 2

Hanover — Veronica Alois netted a hat trick as Brown (6-22-0, 4-17-0 ECAC) defeated Dartmouth (6-21-0, 4-17-0) to snap a six-game losing streak.

Dartmouth’s Kennedy Ottenbreit and Bailee Brekke each ended the night with a goal and an assist, and teammates Mackenzie St. Onge and Hailey Noronha also had assists.

The Big Green outshot the Bears, 38-25. Neither team was able to score on the power play in a game that saw only three penalties. Dartmouth goalie Robyn Chemago had seven saves throughout 28 minutes, while Christie Honor finished out the game and had 13. Brown’s Elvin had 36 saves, 17 in the first.

Dartmouth will conclude the season today against Yale.

Women’s Basketball

Cornell 72, Dartmouth 57

Ithaca, n.y. — Nia Marshall scored 25 points as Cornell (13-9, 4-5 Ivy) defeated Dartmouth (6-16, 1-8).

Fanni Szabo led Dartmouth with 22 points and went 10-for-15 from the field, Teammates Olivia Smith and Kate Letkewicz each scored nine points.

Nicholle Aston scored 14 points and Samantha Widmann 11 for Cornell.

Dartmouth returns to action tonight at Columbia.

Skiing

Dartmouth Leads At Middlebury

Middlebury, Vt. — Freshman Abby Drach and senior Fabian Stocek won their respective cross country races at the Rikert Nordic Center on Friday as Dartmouth finished the day with five skiers on the podium to build a 63-point lead (498-435) over Vermont at the Middlebury Carnival.

The host Panthers sit in a distant third with 365 points, while Williams (329) and New Hampshire (323) make up the rest of the top five.

Drach won the women’s 15K freestyle (40:02.5), while Dartmouth freshman Lauren Jortberg was third.

The Big Green’s Luke Brown was second to Stocek (46:17.9) in the 20K freestyle. Dartmouth’s Thomas Woolson was third in the men’s slalom (1:35.10).

Dartmouth put five skiers in the women’s slalom top 10, led by sophomore Alexa Dlouhy in fourth in 1:38.00.

The carnival will conclude today, beginning with the first run of the women’s giant slalom at 9:30 a.m. and the women’s classic sprint relay kicking off at 10 a.m.

Men’s Tennis

Dartmouth 4, Penn 1

Princeton, n.j. — Dartmouth (3-4) opened the ECAC Men’s Indoor Tennis Championship with a defeat of Penn (4-4).

Dartmouth jumped out to an early lead courtesy of doubles wins at Nos. 1 (George Wall and Roko Glasnovic) and 3 (Ciro Riccardi and Charlie Broom).

Broom, Glasnovic and Wall won in singles to clinch the match.

Dartmouth will play Columbia — which swept St. John’s on the first day of action — at noon today. The winner will head to the championship match.

Men’s Squash

Dartmouth 8Franklin & Marshall 1

Boston — Eighth-ranked Dartmouth (8-7) defeated No. 15 Franklin & Marshall (7-12) to advance to the semifinals of the Hohen Cup in Division B of the CSA Team Nationals.

Nick Harrington, Brian Giegerich, Matt Giegerich, Jack Harvey, Carson Spahr, Alvin Heumann, Sam Epley and Glen Brickman won for the Big Green.