Big Green Dumps Weary Icewomen

HANOVER, N.H.--With only 11 skaters on its roster, the Harvard women's hockey team knows how crucial the element of fatigue is to its success.

Throw in the negative effects of a two-week layoff and an outbreak of the flu, and endurance alone can deprive Harvard of a victory.

Such was the case Wednesday night, as the tired Crimson (4-6 overall, 1-2 Ivy) committed mental mistake after mental mistake in a 5-2 loss to Dartmouth (2-4, 1-0) here in Thompson Arena.

The flu sidelined freshman defender Suzanne Obst, and several other key players--including standout sophmore goalie Erin Villiotte--played at less than full effectiveness. "We just didn't have the legs tonight," Harvard Coach John Dooley said after the game. "We've only been on the ice since Friday, and along with our problems with illnesses, we just didn't have anything left at the end."

But Dooley was quick to complement the Big Green: "Dartmouth plays at a very high skill level. They have a very good team."

Dartmouth forechecked relentlessly throughout the game. The Big Green offense--led by forward Gretchen Ulion's hat trick and defender Kim Cohen's two assists--outshot the Crimson 41-15 and made the first two periods seem like one extended Big Green power play.

Still, the game was definitely winnable for the Crimson. Early in the third period, with the score 3-1 and Harvard on a power play, Crimson Co-Captains Kim Landry and Joey Alissi had a 2-on-1 break with a chance to cut the margin to one. But Landry's shot sailed harmlessly wide of goalie Sarah Millet, and Harvard would not threaten again until Landry's power play tip-in with 28 seconds remaining ended the scoring.

"We had good chances, but there was no sustained effort out there," Landry said. "This was the kind of game you need to win--Dartmouth was definitely a beatable team, but tonight we weren't up to it."

Quite frankly, the score could have been much worse. Time and time again, defensive giveaways set up open slot shots for the Big Green forwards, and only a Herculean effort by the flu-plagued Villiotte saved further carnage. But she couldn's stop everything. Dartmouth forward Sara Vogler's 20-foot shot through a screen opened the scoring at 13:36 of the first period.

Ulion added her first two goals on identical rushes from the right wing early in the second, widening the gap to 3-0 and threatening to blow the game wide open.

But Crimson junior defender Francie Walton scored late in the period through an Alissi screen, and suddenly the door opened to a possible Harvard comeback.

The Big Green would hear nothing of it, however--when Ulion finished her hat trick with a pretty wrist shot from the slot, the game was virtually over. Junior forward Kim Reid ended the Dartmouth scoring with a goal at 12:47 of the third.

"Dartmouth had good shot accuracy. They really knew where they were shooting the puck," Villiotte said. "Of course, it doesn't help when the defense falls back all around you."

DARTMOUTH, 5-2 at Hanover, N.H. Harvard  0  1  1  --  2 Dartmouth  1  2  2  --  5

G: Harvard--Francie Walton, Kim Landry; Dartmouth--Sara Vogler, Gretchen Ulion (3), Kim Reid A: Harvard--Holly Leitzes; Dartmouth--Vogler, Kim Cohen (2) Sarah Howald, Sarah Devens. S: Harvard--Erin Villiotte (36); Dartmouth--Sarah Millet (13).