Tussle With Big Green Looms

Hiding in the middle of a schedule full of nationally ranked foes, the No. 16 Harvard men’s lacrosse team’s game against Dartmouth (2-3, 0-0 Ivy) Saturday might not turn heads immediately.

But for a team coming off a heartbreaking loss to Brown, the weekend contest against the Big Green offers something else—the chance for rejuvenation.

“I think one of our goals is to really kind of bounce back,” Crimson coach John Tillman said, “[To] come out with a lot of energy, and really be excited to play from the opening whistle and kind of put last week behind us.”

The same could likely be said of Dartmouth, a team coming off a tough loss of its own—a 15-3 defeat at the hands of No. 10 Duke, whom Harvard (4-2, 0-1 Ivy) faces next Friday.

And while the Big Green may not be nationally ranked, it has beaten a respected squad in Colgate and can still make a push for a bid to the Ivy League tournament.

“It means a lot,” Dartmouth coach Andrew Tower said. “I’m sure it means a lot to both teams. Every conference game means a lot to how you do at the end of the year [which effects] your ability to make the NCAA tournament.”

The Crimson must avoid letting excitement turn into impatience on offense, as it faces a Dartmouth defense designed to make offensive stars work a little harder.

Against more traditional man-to-man defenses, Harvard’s dynamic scorers might have a clear path to goal after beating their defensemen, but the Big Green’s zone defense is designed to clog up the space around the goal, making one-on-one skills less important than strong passing and fluid ball movement.

“The biggest thing is having the right zone mentality, making sure that you’re patient,” Tillman said. “When teams run zone, they want you to be impatient and then take a rushed shot instead of really looking for the best shot, not the first shot.”

This means that Harvard can’t simply rely on the one-on-one skills of attackmen such as junior Dean Gibbons and sophomores Jeff Cohen and Kevin Vaughan.

Luckily for the Crimson, it possesses a strong midfield lineup as well. Sophomore Terry White is third is on the team in scoring, behind Gibbons and Cohen, and was named to the Inside Lacrosse team of the week on March 16. Senior Jason Duboe was named a preseason All-America honorable mention by the same website.

For the strong Harvard attack and midfield units, the cohesion required to break a zone shouldn’t be lacking.

“I know that John [Tillman] has done a great job with the Harvard attack unit,” Towers said. “Both [Gibbons and Cohen] are great players. We certainly have a ton of respect for their program.”

Meanwhile, the Big Green’s defensive style could prove to be advantage for the Crimson if it is able to control possession enough.

“Usually if a team plays zone, they’ll allow you to possess the ball,” Tillman said. “And it takes a lot of pressure off your defense so you can really control time of possession. If we have the ball for one or two minutes, that’s terrific.”

The extra time to relax will be especially important given that the squad will have to contend with one of Ivy League’s premier attackers in Dartmouth senior Ari Sussman, a first team All-Ivy selection two years ago.

Sussman paces his squad with 19 points on 10 goals and nine assists. Junior attack Josh Etzion is second with 10 goals and nine assists.

“A lot of the things they do go through him,” Tillman said. “He’s a guy that we’ll certainly have to be well aware of where he is, what he’s doing. He certainly has the ability to make other players around him better, and that’s a compliment to him. So he’s a guy we’ll have to definitely keep an eye on.”

But the Crimson should be well-prepared for Sussman and the Big Green attack. It has excellent defensemen, headlined by captain Billy Geist, an Inside Lacrosse preseason All-America honorable mention selection. Sophomores Paul Pate and Dan DiMaria are also solid.

An added benefit is Harvard’s familiarity with Dartmouth’s offense, which the Crimson has been anticipating in the week of practice.

“They will kind of show you ‘This is what we’re going to run, can you stop it?’” Tillman said. “And you basically have to line up and guard, this is how we’re going to defend it and hopefully we defend it well…they’re not trying to trick you.”

Nor should there be too many tricks this weekend. It’s a game between two talented squads with winning records seeking to bounce back after tough losses and make a dent in the Ivy League.

But with a national ranking, added motivation, and a multitude of talent at both ends, Harvard has too much going for it to be stopped by the Big Green.

—Staff writer Christina C. McClintock can be reached at ccmcclin@fas.harvard.edu.