Original Article: http://dartreview.com/archives/1998/02/04/dartmouth_goes_to_nagano.php
Wednesday, February 4, 1998
Attached to the fireplace in the lodge of the Dartmouth Skiway is a plaque. Few people notice it as they rush about eating food or putting on ski-boots, but the plaque is a list of Dartmouth alumni who have represented their country in the various Winter Olympics through the years. Dartmouth men and women have been in every Olympics since the series' inception, and the upcoming games are no exception. What follows is a profile of some of the women who will be representing the United States in Nagano.
The Dartmouth Ski Teams have been among the most decorated athletic programs throughout College history. The list of alumni from the program is both long and distinguished. Suzanne King '86 did not, surprisingly, participate on the ski teams at the College. That hasn't stopped her from being a member of the Women's Cross Country team. A former religion major who taught English in a Japanese public school, King was an Olympian in the 1994 Games as well as the defending U.S. 10k and 15k pursuit champion.
King will be joined on the team by fellow Dartmouth alumna Nina Kemppel '92. Kemppel is the most experienced member of the U.S. Cross Country team, with two previous Olympic appearances as well as two U.S. championships. Besides her skiing, Kempell is also an avid climbed who has mounted both Mt. McKinley and Mont Blanc. Liz McIntyre '87 will be making her fourth Olympic appearance as a member of the US Freestyle Team. Ms. McIntyre won a silver in the 1994 Games in Lillehammer. Finally, Stacey Wooley '91 will be a member of the US Biathlon team. This event is a bit unusual — it combines the endurance of Nordic skiing with the precision of rifle shooting.
Dartmouth athletes have proven to be more than just avid skiers. One alumna is a member of the Women's Luge team. Cammy Myler '92 will be making her fourth Olympic appearance. During the 1994 games in Lillehammer, Myler was the flag-bearer for the U.S. squad. Myler has shown herself to be the best female luger in the country. She won her first of six national championships at age 16 and was named the Female Luge Athlete of the Year for nine straight years. This winter she hopes to top her previous best finish of fifth (1992) in order to take home a medal.
Finally, two members of the Dartmouth community will be a part of the first American Olympic Women's Ice Hockey team in Nagano. The U.S. squad is considered a viable contender for a medal.
Gretchen Ulion '94 set eleven Dartmouth College records while a forward on the Dartmouth team. Ulion also played lacrosse while in Hanover. She considers the Olympics the 'ultimate dream,' after growing up thinking herself 'the only girl on the planet playing hockey.' Sarah Tueting, a goalkeeper on the squad, is not yet an alumna. The member of the class of 1998, Tueting took a leave of absence in order to be a member of the U.S. Team.
The Ivy League Rookie of the Year in 1995, Tueting has made appearances on various U.S. National squads in 1996 and 1997. Tueting is not just an athlete; she also plays the cello for the Dartmouth College symphony orchestra and hopes to pursue a career in medicine. Hopefully, she will be returning to Dartmouth with a gold medal.
The tradition of Dartmouth athletes performing at the highest levels of competition will continue in the coming weeks in the 1998 Olympics from Nagano, Japan.
Basketball
Friday night. Prime time. A sold-out Leede Arena will be the venue for the matchup between the Dartmouth men's basketball team against the number 11-ranked Princeton Tigers. This matchup means little to the Tigers. So far this season the Tigers have beaten nationally prominent programs such as Texas, North Carolina State, and Wake Forest.
The only blemish on their 16-1 record was an eight point loss to the University of North Carolina Tar-Heels, then the number one team in the country. Clearly, Princeton knows how to play ball.
The team has depth and experience. Four starters return from last year's Ivy League Championship team. While Dartmouth has the current Ivy League scoring leader in Shaun Gee '00, Princeton has four players among the league's leaders, Dartmouth's representation is remarkably less diverse.
Gee is joined only by PJ Halas '98, who is currently ranked tenth in the league in scoring. The Tigers are not known for a dominant style of play, rather a deliberate form of offense called by some as 'slow basketball.' The team maximizes the use of the shot clock to wait for high-percentage shots and avoids falling into a 'run and gun' style so prevalent in college hoops today.
The Dartmouth men are not without hope. The team enters this game with confidence after winning the last three games over Navy, Yale, and Brown. The team has shown a lot of character already this season, coming through with last-second wins over Navy and Yale as well as an upset of Harvard. Halas in on fire as of late setting two new personal bests in as many games. Gee and Ian
McGinnis '01 have also been hot.
Gee is averaging 17 points per game while the freshman is averaging nearly 8. The game is being played in the friendly confines of Leede Arena, which was sold out earlier this week. The campus is abuzz with excitement.
It would be easy to say that Princeton is already looking past this game; and ahead to the NCAA Tournament. Reports from New Jersey indicate that this is a distinct concern. Undeated in Ivy League action last year and being the two-time Champs can cause a little over-confidence. However, to the Ivy League opponents who see Princeton twice every season, the 'slow basketball' style is no shock. If Princeton does indeed try to look past this game, or any other Ivy opponent for that matter, they will find themselves the victims of quite an upset.
For Dartmouth — Senior PJ Halas is on fire. His last two performances included 25 and 27 points each. He is the leader of the team and his level of play will be an indicator of how the team should do. Another player to keep an eye on is sophomore Shaun Gee.
He is leading the Ivies in scoring, averaging 17.3 points per game. He is also third in the Ivies in three-pointers made. Finally, don't forget the younger players, like power forward Ian McGinnis.
The freshman has already made an impact on the team. He is known to step it up a notch when the going gets tough. Watch for him to dominate inside; he leads the teamin rebounding.
For Princeton — Brian Earl is the team's leading scorer with just under 14 points per game. Princeton distributes the points pretty evenly with their style of play, so opponents are wary to double-team any particular individual. Another valuable player is Gabe Lewullis.
The sophomore had an outstanding season last year and this year is averaging just a tenth of a point less per game than Earl.
He is the team's leading rebounder so expect to see some match-ups between him and McGinnis. The other important player to watch will be Steve Goodrich. The team's third leading points leader, he is also second on the squad with rebounds and assists.
Overall this squad is extremely well balanced and it is worthwhile to note that four of the five starters are listed in the top 25 of Ivy scoring while on two Dartmouth men are listed.