Hanover
Her team’s 27 turnovers were a sign of Dartmouth’s downfall in its 13-11 loss to Penn on Saturday afternoon at Scully-Fahey Field in a game between two undefeated teams in Ivy League play. The Big Green’s offense — its strength this spring — went quiet in the second half, allowing Penn to overcome a two-goal halftime deficit for its ninth victory of the season; the Big Green only scored once in the final 21 minutes and 39 seconds, suffering its first loss since Feb. 17.
“I think, the fact we had 27 turnovers … and still played a top-10 team so close shows that we’re a good team,” said Spencer, Dartmouth’s second-year coach. “But, with that said, you can’t have 27 turnovers and expect to beat Penn. That’s the number that sticks out to me the most.”
Dartmouth fell to 7-2 overall, 3-1 in the Ivy League this spring. It’s still on pace for its first winning season since 2014, when the Big Green began a four-year stretch in which it was 23-35 overall. But Saturday’s loss stung for different reasons. Dartmouth led or was tied for a full 36 minutes, before Penn scored the game’s final three goals in a 7:36 stretch to pull away.
If only, Spencer said, her team could have taken a little more care with the ball.
“I think most of those were self-inflicted wounds,” she said of her team’s turnover numbers. “I thought we worked really hard. But some of those, we just didn’t necessarily have our head screwed on straight.”
Penn jumped out to an early lead in a wide-open first half that saw 14 goals, five lead changes and four ties between two of the Ivy’s most prolific offenses. Ellie Carson, last week’s Ivy League offensive player of the week, got Dartmouth on the board a little more than five minutes in with a free position shot to extend her team lead in goals. She finished the game with two goals on four shots.
“They’re a really deep team in terms of talent,” Carson said. “They came out really hard, were matching all of our goals. I think it was a battle back and forth. We definitely made some unforced errors that let them get the lead. That let them pull ahead, but I thought it was really hard fought on both sides.”
Penn (9-2 overall, 3-0 Ivy) took a 5-4 lead with 12:03 left in the first half, on the first of Quaker freshman Zoe Belodeau’s four goals, before Dartmouth took control with a four-goal run. Tori Chanenchuk, Liz Mastrio, Campbell Brewer and Carson all scored for the Big Green, which built the game’s first multi-goal lead with 1:58 left on the clock.
Quaker sophomore Erin Barry stopped the run, watching a last-second shot float by Dartmouth keeper Kiera Vrindten just before the halftime horn. Dartmouth led, 8-6, at the intermission.
That’s when the game fell apart for the Big Green.
Dartmouth gave up 13 turnovers, was out-shot 18-11, trailed 11-8 on ground balls and was outscored 7-3 in the second half. Vrindten was busier after halftime, making seven saves, as Dartmouth’s offense was slowed by turnovers, both in transition and deep in its offensive territory, and shots that harmlessly floated over Penn keeper Mikail Cheeseman.
“They started putting away their shots,” Carson said. “Their cutters were getting a little bit more open. We were forcing it on attack a little bit, which I think we all were making little errors here and there. They ended up picking up the speed and we weren’t putting them away as well as we were in the beginning.”
Katie Bourque gave Dartmouth an 11-10 lead with 11:33 remaining. But Penn’s offense found some daylight, as Barry tied the game 3:57 later. Belodeau, the highest-scoring freshman in Penn history, netted the final two Quaker goals.
Dartmouth had a chance to pull within one seconds later, a full 90 seconds of possession time deep in Penn’s defensive zone that saw three shots sail high and wide of Cheeseman’s net. The Big Green gave up possession as the shot clock expired, allowing Penn to run down the clock.
Carson, an Alexandria, Va. native, leads Dartmouth with 29 goals and 11 assists this season. She scored four goals and six assists a year ago, playing out-of-position as a forward-turned midfielder during her inaugural season with the Big Green. It has helped, Carson said, switching back to a natural position at attack.
“Last year, I was a little bit nervous (playing out of position), also as a freshman,” Carson said. “As an attacker, I think I’m a lot more confident. And our whole attack, we’re all very close friends off the field. … I trust every single one of them with the ball. I think that makes a difference.”
Added Spencer: “(Carson) has such a bright future. I know she’s really down on herself right now, but I’m not down on her at all. She’s a great player. I was an attacker too, we all have those games. It’s frustrating. But you’ve just got to let it fuel the fire a little bit.”
Dartmouth fell to Penn, 17-6, last season in Philadelphia; its close battle with the Quakers this time around, Spencer said, seems to illustrate the progress her squad has made in one year. The defeat, if anything, brings the Big Green back down to reality — a reminder that there is more work to be done.
“Everything is not going happen overnight, but we certainly played a much tougher game the whole time (against Penn),” Spencer said. “We were up for a large part of it. I think, our belief in ourselves is even stronger this year. Being able to win some of the games we have has helped fuel that belief. It helps us stay motivated. We’re down, but we’re certainly not out, by this loss.”
Dartmouth travels to Boston College on Wednesday and Cornell on Saturday.
Josh Weinreb can be reached at jweinreb@vnews.com or 603-727-3306.