Indian Sports Round Up

By Benjamin Flickinger | Thursday, October 23, 2003

Coming into the season, the Dartmouth football team had high aspirations. They were picked to finish fourth in the preseason poll, and 15 of the 22 starters were returning for this season. The marketing department's slogan to hype the season: "A legacy reborn."

But the start of the season has failed to add to Dartmouth's famed legacy, which includes one National title (1925), 17 Ivy League titles, and five unbeaten and untied seasons, the last occurring only seven years ago in 1996 with a 10-0 record.

Instead, this team looks like it will continue the spiral of the last few, already sporting a 0-4 record and a 0-2 record in conference play after falling to Yale by a final of 40-17.

Dartmouth not only fought an unbeaten team but also the most hostile crowd it might face all year. Over 20,000 fans filled the Yale Bowl for the game on a beautiful and unseasonably warm fall afternoon. Once again, the second half crushed the team from Hanover, as a 14-10 halftime deficit spiraled out of control.

Yale's Alvin Cowan threw for 318 yards and 2 touchdowns to lead the Elis to victory. Pat Risha '05 led the way for Dartmouth, gaining 109 yards rushing on 21 carries.

Unless the ship rights itself, it appears that Dartmouth will finish with its sixth straight losing season, a feat that hasn't happened since a 6-year span from 1950-55.

If there's hope for the Big Green, it's that three of their first four opponents are ranked or received votes in the USA Today 1-AA poll. Penn is ranked 15th, Colgate 17th, and Yale is poised to jump into the polls as well. The schedule should be considerably easier now, with only the showdown against #24 Harvard looming as a likely loss. Before that, Dartmouth has a chance to start winning streak against 1-5 Holy Cross and perennial Ivy League bottom-feeder Columbia.

To turn the season around, however, Dartmouth must do it without their original number one quarterback. Scott Wille '04 started as the first-string QB but decided to leave the team after the UNH game. Charlie Riggers '06, who made his first career start against Penn, where he kept Dartmouth close though they never truly threatened to pull off the upset, will take over as center.

Things started ugly for the team with a loss to Colgate 31-9 in the annual spirit day game when most freshmen arrive wearing their College T-shirts. Dartmouth failed to reach the end-zone, settling for three field goals.

The Colgate loss was followed by a defeat by New Hampshire in the annual Granite Bowl. Dartmouth held its own in the first half, trailing by only a touchdown and holding a time of possession advantage, but the second half UNH dominated, as the Wildcats outscored Dartmouth in the second half 21-3 to win the game going away, 42-17.

The team will finish its non-conference schedule on Saturday in a road-game against Holy Cross. The Crusaders are currently 0-2 against Ivy League opponents, having lost to Harvard and Yale already this year.

Dartmouth returns home October 25 for a Homecoming match-up against Columbia with a 12:30 kickoff. The annual Homecoming bonfire the night before hopefully will give the Big Green incentive to win.

Soccer Teams Have Winning Ways

Both Dartmouth soccer teams are gunning for the Ivy title this year, though the men's team has hit a rough patch. After starting the season 4-0-2, men's soccer has a three-game losing streak. Each game was decided by a single goal.

The last two losses to Princeton and Yale were particularly devastating, as they put the team in the hole in conference. Princeton defeated Dartmouth 3-2 in overtime at Chase Field after Dartmouth had tied the game in the eighty-ninth minute. Yale beat the team 1-0 down in New Haven and left Dartmouth with a 0-2 Ivy record.

The women's soccer team has had the opposite experience. After winning the season opener, the Dartmouth women went on a five-game losing streak. But they?ve caught fire lately, going 4-0-1 in their last five games to get back to .500 at 5-5-1. They are also the only unbeaten and untied team left in Ivy League play at 3-0.

Dartmouth started the winning streak by knocking off UNH 3-1 in Hanover before going on the road to open Ivy League play with a 3-0 win at Brown. They came back to beat Princeton in a 3-2 thriller with the game winner coming with only 48 seconds left in the second half and overtime looming.

The women followed up by tying Boston University 1-1 on the road. They capped the road trip by defeating Yale 1-0 in overtime.

Indian Sports Round Up

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