The Dartmouth Sports Weekly 10/26/15

10.26. 15

FOOTBALL NARROWLY BEATS COLUMBIA 13-9

MEN’S SOCCER STAYS UNBEATEN IN IVY LEAGUE

WOMEN’S SOCCER LOSES TO COLUMBIA 2-1 PAULA MENDOZA, ELIZA MCDONOUGH, TIFFANY ZHAI/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF

THE DARTMOUTH SPORTS WEEKLY

SW 2

BY THE NUMBERS

6 Consecutive wins for men’s soccer

17 Penalties committed by the football team

161 Yards lost on penalties for football

10 Goals this season by soccer’s Lucielle Kozlov ’16

Despite penalty-filled performance, football

B y ALEXANDER AGADJANIAN The Dartmouth Staff

In what can only be described as an unforeseen rarity in the context of a dominant 2015 season, the football team — which had previously been blowing out opponents by an average of almost 25 points — experienced its first close call of the season on Saturday against Columbia University.

Playing in its first game as a nationally ranked team since 1996, the No. 25 Big Green found a way to maintain its unblemished 2015 record. Moreover, reaching 6-0 portends favorably — in the five previous times Dartmouth began at that pace it ended the season by winning the Ivy League title.

Leading by four with four minutes remaining, the offense had an opportunity to seal the win over the Lions.

The offense, however, was unable to string a successful drive together, and it was left up to the defense — the slightly more consistent of the team’s two superb units — to stave off one last opposing push from Columbia.

Having yielded a first down as the visitors marched to midfield, the defense stiffened up over the next four downs, capped by an interception from Charlie Miller ’17 as the Big Green (6-0, 3-0) escaped with a nerve-wracking 13-9 win over the Lions (1-5, 0-3).

While the Columbia defense neutralized the home team’s offense better than any prior opponent, penalties plagued Dartmouth like never before. Already a spot of concern for the team, the Big Green suffered heavily from 17 fouls that set Dartmouth back 161 yards — setting two unfavorable school records — and concentrated more in the latter stages of the game. The high penalty numbers represented an anomaly for the Big Green and at several times came at the result of questionable officiating decisions. The calls — along with five on Columbia — translated into a highly unusual game that lacked rhythm or continuity.

“I saw the officials getting iced down in the training room just after [the game], it’s one of the strangest

Katie McKay ’16 Editor-in-Chief

10. 26. 15

MONDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2015

Luke McCann ’16 Executive Editor

TIFFANY ZHAI/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF

Dartmouth’s defense proved steadfast despite a number of penalties, holding Columbia to just 167 yards of offense.

ball games that I’ve seen,” Dartmouth head coach Buddy Teevens said in the first thoughts he expressed about the game.

Dalyn Williams ’16 finished below his lofty 2015 standards with 20-34 passing for 235 yards and a touchdown and not much success on the ground. Apart from the referees’ whistle, a ferocious Columbia pass rush that sacked the Dartmouth quarterback six times impeded Williams’ progress most of all on Saturday.

In what mirrored the contest against Central Connecticut State University one week ago, Williams and company were playing to their fullest potential to start the game.

On the opening drive of the game, Williams easily picked apart a seemingly overmatched Lion defense, completing all five of his passes for 51 yards, throwing to receivers who found plenty of open space in a leaky coverage unit. After a fourth down

conversion, Williams ran an option play right and pitched the ball to Abrm McQuarters ’17, who went 20 yards down the sideline for the opening touchdown within the first five minutes of play.

The steady stream of penalty flags, however, was already flowing. On the punt return play when Dartmouth next received the ball, linebacker Will Konstant ’16 laid a crunching block on a Columbia defender that earned him a personal foul, as well as a targeting call resulting in his ejection from the game. Though replays indicated a hit at shoulder level, the decision stood as officials do not have access to reviews. Within the first 10 minutes of play, Dartmouth already had four penalties that netted 27 yards.

Moreover, these penalties caused an unbalanced field position and led to the Lions’ first points of the game.

The miscues moved Dartmouth to its own three-yard line and compound-

ed a poor first punt by Ben Kepley ’17 — overshadowed by a terrific punting performance otherwise — that gave Columbia the ball at the Big Green 38. The Lions only needed one first down to set up a 31-yard field goal, cutting their deficit to 7-3.

On each of the remaining offensive drives during the first half for Dartmouth, penalties and quarterback pressure severely hampered any momentum the offense had generated in its first possession. After a third down sack ended the second drive, a blind side hit on the next drive by Columbia defensive tackle Lord Hyeamang on Williams — who tried to spin away from the hit — popped the ball loose, and Columbia pounced on the recovery. The play merely presaged what was to come, as constant blitzes and pressure from the edges affected Williams on nearly every play.

Passing plays quickly broke down which forced Williams to survey his

Justin Levine ’16 Publisher

Jessica Avitabile ’16 Executive Editor

Joe Clyne ’16 Henry Arndt ’16 Sports Editors

Kate Herrington ’17 Photography Editor

TIFFANY ZHAI/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF

Columbia University put a good deal of pressure on Dalyn Williams ’16, sacking him six times over the course of the game.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2015

THE DARTMOUTH SPORTS WEEKLY

holds on to defeat Columbia 13-9 receivers quickly and make throws on the run, precluding adequate time to stand in the pocket. Because of this pressure, Williams’s accuracy was noticeably askew.

Throughout the half and most of the game, the senior overthrew his receivers on multiple long throws in unseemly fashion and could not develop a rapport with his wideouts on short passes either.

On its second to last possession in the first half, Dartmouth made a key adjustment. Knowing the defense’s pass rush proclivity, the offense called a screen pass that perfectly counteracted the pressure Columbia was consistently sending, as Williams threw the screen to Ryder Stone ’18 for a quick 13-yard first down. With the defense on its feet, Williams then uncorked a 41-yard pass that found Victor Williams ’16 on his back shoulder on the next play.

A quick snap ensued, and Dalyn Williams found his namesake wideout once again open for a five-yard touchdown. After a blocked extra point, the score stood 13-3 in Dartmouth’s favor. By halftime, Dalyn Williams had accumulated 186 yards on a 15-26 clip, but had thrown under 50 percent following the first drive.

On the other side of the ball, the Big Green defense stayed in characteristic form during the first half. Namely, the unit forced Columbia into three-and-outs on five of its first six drives of the game. For a span that lasted more than 15 minutes in the middle of the first half, the Lions failed to muster a single first down. At the halftime break, Dartmouth had conceded a paltry 52 yards and three first downs.

Yet, the defense suffered its first and only mishap in the opening minutes of the second half. In its most successful possession on the day, Columbia capitalized on an effective pass-run mix and short methodical gains to move upfield. On the 13th play of a seven-minute long drive, Columbia quarterback Skyler Mornhinweg found his receiver Dylan Weldon for a short touchdown pass. A missed extra point kept the score at 13-9.

Over the next four opposing possessions, the unit yielded no ground once again in forcing four consecutive threeand-outs.

Meanwhile, the Big Green offense still struggled to find some stability. Dalyn Williams, constantly forced to scramble out of the pocket, continued to receive big hits and misfire on his long throws.

On top of this difficulty, the officials — who rankled Dartmouth coaches, players and fans alike — provided no help. After a 49-yard run by Stone put Dartmouth in opposing territory, Dalyn Williams connected with Victor Williams on a deep throw in the left corner of the end zone, but was called incomplete. Yet upon replay review, the receiver clearly had the necessary one foot down after hauling in the ball.

Furthermore, in a contest that progressively increased in aggression from both sides as the game went along, penalty flags disproportionately targeted the Big Green. Eight penalties were called on Dartmouth in the fourth quarter, three of which came on unsportsmanlike conducts. Seven penalties were enforced for 80 yards, and all of which helped offset the 112 yards amassed by the offense in the quarter. On an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty called on Stone, video replay shows an exaggerated recoil by a Lion defender. Columbia, on the other hand, was called for just one penalty in this same time frame.

Among the most damaging effects of the penalties, the constant interruptions and setbacks disrupted any offensive rhythm, Teevens said.

“It’s close to impossible,” Teevens said about developing the offense with so many flags flying around. “I think in the second half every single series [had] a 15-yard penalty. [With] the dead ball fouls, you lose the down and 15 yards, so to try to make that up. There’s not enough plays in the playbook to try to figure that out.”

Yet, when the game was over, Dartmouth had managed to overcome its first true test of adversity, which came in many forms on the field. An interception by Miller with 21 seconds left in the game marked a fitting conclusion, as the defense unquestionably guided the team in its closest game in almost a calendar year, garnering the praise of the team’s quarterback in the process.

“Offensively, we didn’t execute the way we thought we were going to,” Williams said. “Our defense came out and did a really good job, did their part, kept us in the game [and] gave us great field position. They played their hearts out.”

By the end of the contest, Dartmouth had finished with a commanding 325-167 edge in total yardage over Columbia, a mark that was not reflected in the tight final score line. The Big Green’s penalty yardage of 161 came just short of eclipsing the Lions’ own offensive totals.

“We have to be more disciplined,” linebacker Will McNamara ’16 said about the performance. “Obviously it wasn’t our best effort… [Defensively] we know that’s our capability. Hats off to Columbia, they played a great game. But we know what we can do, and we’re going to go out and do it every Saturday.”

After the game, Teevens felt that benefits of the team having a close win outweighed those of another dominant victory.

“I’m happy that we were in a close game, and guys got the emotional end of it,” Teevens said. “To be in that situation and maintain your confidence… that was critical. You get lessons from everything, lessons in terms of frustration, focus, distractions [and] playing close.”

Aspirations for the Ivy League conference crown face no greater test than on Friday, Oct. 30, when the Big Green visits fellow nationally-ranked and undefeated Ivy rival Harvard University for a Friday night showdown that will likely determine the conference champion.

SW 3

THE

RUNDOWN Football SCHOOL

IVY

OVERALL

HARVARD DARTMOUTH BROWN PENN YALE PRINCETON COLUMBIA CORNELL

3-0 3-0 2-1 2-1 1-2 1-2 0-3 0-3

6-0 6-0 4-2 3-3 4-2 4-2 1-5 0-6

Women’s Soccer SCHOOL

IVY

OVERALL

PRINCETON HARVARD CORNELL COLUMBIA PENN BROWN YALE DARTMOUTH

5-0 4-1 2-2-1 2-2-1 1-1-3 1-3-1 1-4 0-3-2

12-3 7-7-1 9-2-4 6-7-1 6-3-5 5-7-2 4-8-2 7-4-3

Men’s Soccer SCHOOL

IVY

OVERALL

DARTMOUTH HARVARD BROWN COLUMBIA PRINCETON PENN CORNELL YALE

4-0 3-1 2-1-1 2-2 1-2-1 1-2-1 1-3 0-3-1

8-3-1 6-5-2 7-5-1 8-4-1 7-4-2 2-8-2 3-10-1 1-10-1

Field Hockey SCHOOL

IVY

OVERALL

PRINCETON PENN CORNELL COLUMBIA HARVARD DARTMOUTH BROWN YALE

5-0 4-1 4-1 2-3 2-3 2-3 1-4 0-5

8-6 12-2 10-5 8-6 7-6 6-7 6-8 2-12

Volleyball

TIFFANY ZHAI/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF

Dartmouth’s normally potent offense put together a few solid drives, but was only able to put the ball in the end zone twice.

SCHOOL

IVY

OVERALL

HARVARD DARTMOUTH YALE PRINCETON BROWN PENN COLUMBIA CORNELL

6-2 6-2 5-3 4-4 4-4 3-5 3-5 1-7

10-8 9-8 10-7 9-8 10-10 9-11 5-12 5-13

THE DARTMOUTH SPORTS WEEKLY

SW 4

MONDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2015

Men’s soccer beats Columbia to stay unbeaten in Ivy League

B y RAY LU

The Dartmouth Staff

The men’s soccer team (8-3-1, 4-0 Ivy) scored two goals in the first half to top Columbia University (8-4-1, 2-2 Ivy) this past Saturday at 2-1.

Eduvie Ikoba ’19 and Justin Donawa ’19 notched tallies in the first half, and the defense, led by captain and goalkeeper Stefan Cleveland ’16, held off Columbia’s offense for the remainder of the game.

The victory over the Big Red pushes Dartmouth’s current winning streak to six games and continues their undefeated conference play. With Harvard University losing to Princeton University this past weekend, the Big Green now sits on top of the Ivy League leaderboard in sole possession of first place.

“It’s nice to know that we’ve got the most momentum in the Ivy League, but at the same time there are still three [Ivy League] games left, which is almost half a season,” Cleveland said. “A lot of things can change, so we’ve got to stay on top of our game.”

Ikoba, who leads the team in shots with 22 and points with nine, finished a corner from Matt Greer ’18 at a narrow angle from the left of the goal. His touch slotted into the bottom right corner of the net in the 27th minute. Ikoba and Matt Danilack ’18 lead the Big Green in scoring with three goals each.

“It was a corner kick, and in practice we work on set pieces, so we all knew where we were going to make our runs, and I was lucky

enough to make my run exactly when the ball came,” Ikoba said.

“I saw it coming, and I knew if I could just flick it, I could be able to redirect it into the net. Luckily it was able to get in there.”

Donawa earned the first goal of his collegiate career in spectacular fashion, firing a rocket from 40 yards out that beat Columbia senior goalkeeper Kyle Jackson. On a breakaway late in the first half, Donawa saw an opportunity and put the ball squarely in the bottom back right corner of the goal beyond Jackson’s outstretched hands. With Donawa’s goal, 11 Dartmouth players have found the back of the net this season.

The Lions had a couple of early opportunities. Shortly before Ikoba’s goal, Columbia rattled the ball inside Dartmouth’s penalty box. Cleveland bobbled the ball but was able to cleanly sweep away any danger. In the 36th minute, sophomore Alex Bangerl took a free kick that soared just above the crossbar.

While Dartmouth was clearly in control at halftime, the Lions refused to back down in the second half. The Big Green outshot the Lions 5-to-1 in the first period, but in the second half Columbia fired off 13 shots to Dartmouth’s three and had the only two corner kicks after halftime.

“We knew that it was their last opportunity at an Ivy League title, so they were going to come out with everything they got,” Cleveland said.

“Especially going into the half with a 2-0 lead, we knew we had to be strong, because they were going to

throw everything they had at us.”

One of those shots was able to beat Cleveland, who had secured back-to-back shutouts before this game. Junior Rhys Williams took a shot that was blocked by Wyatt Omsberg ’18. The rebound fell back to Williams, but Cleveland saved the second effort. The third bounce fell to sophomore Andrew Tinari, who found Frederick Elliot to his left. Elliot shot across the face of the goal and scored in the far corner.

Prior to this goal, Cleveland had manned the net for 360 scoreless minutes, dating back to the 2-1 loss to Seattle University on Sep. 20.

Since that game, Dartmouth has not lost and conceded only one goal in a 2-1 victory against the University of Vermont on Oct. 6 with James Hickok ’17 in goal.

Cleveland was impenetrable for the rest of the game against the Lions. He soared high to snag a Columbia free kick in the 53rd minute and recorded all four of his saves in the second half.

The two teams combined for 31 fouls and six yellow cards in this game. Many of Columbia’s scoring opportunities came on free kicks just outside of the box. Senior Antonio Matarazzo tested Cleveland with a volley off a set piece in the 65th minute, but the goalkeeper made the diving save.

The Lions entered Saturday’s matchup on a two-game win streak, topping Sacred Heart University and Princeton, the latter of which finished tied with Dartmouth for the Ivy League title last season.

ELIZA MCDONOUGH/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF

Dartmouth’s narrow victory over the Lions kept the Big Green unbeaten in Ivy play.

Dartmouth has conceded just one goal in Ivy League play and eight for the season, with five of those coming in a two-game road trip to Seattle against a ranked University of Washington team and a Seattle University squad that later beat the Huskies and broke into the top 25 themselves.

In the last NSCAA coaches’ rankings, updated on Oct. 20, Dartmouth was the only Ivy League team to receive votes. The team’s 13 points put them just 26 shy of breaking into the top 25. This week’s result against an up-and-coming Columbia team should help those numbers.

On Tuesday, Dartmouth travels to Durham, New Hampshire, to take on the University of New Hampshire. On Halloween Saturday, the Big Green will face off against second-place Harvard in a highly anticipated matchup.

Last season, Dartmouth tied against Harvard 1-1 after two overtime periods. Stefan Defregger ’15 scored in the fifth minute.

Harvard found an equalizer, but both goalkeepers, including Cleveland, held their ground the rest of the game. The Crimson finished just half a game back of Dartmouth and Princeton last season.

After slow start, women’s soccer falls 2-1 to Columbia

PAULA MENDOZA/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF

Dartmouth tallied 19 total shots in the game but could only notch a single goal.

B y max Kanefield The Dartmouth

The women’s soccer team remained winless in Ivy League play after the team fell at home to Columbia University 2-1 on Saturday. After a sluggish start to the match led to two quick Columbia goals in the first 28 minutes, the Big Green (7-4-3, 0-3-2 Ivy) were unable to mount a complete comeback despite rallying with strong play throughout the second half. The team has struggled to start

games well, and as a result has been unable to find enough time to recover after falling into early deficits.

“We don’t start playing for pride until something hurts our pride,” Melanie Vangel ’18 said. “In this case, its been the other team scoring on us first. That’s been a bad habit that we have gotten into.”

On a raw and frosty afternoon, Dartmouth started off the game slowly while Columbia (6-7-1, 2-2-1 Ivy) got goal opportunities early and took ad-

vantage, netting their two goals on eight shots in the first half. The Big Green has struggled often to play well in the opening minutes of games — particularly in the Ivy League — where a single goal will often decide the result of a contest in such a balanced conference.

“It’s not the first time that someone has scored on us and then we scored, and we have been able to come back and win some of those,” Vangel said.

“But now we’re playing Ivy games where it is a one goal game — it’s 2-1, it’s 1-0 — and sometimes you can’t come back when the teams are so even like that.”

After allowing the two early goals, Dartmouth took control of the game, leading in possession and generating more opportunities. The Big Green matched Columbia with eight shots in the first half, but while Columbia went without a shot on goal in the second half, Dartmouth poured on another 11 shots to finish the game with 19 total.

“The more chances you get, the better chance you have of scoring a goal, which is exactly what happened — we out shot them in the second half,” cocaptain Lucielle Kozlov ’16 said. “If we

missed a chance, we were right back creating another chance and trying to create another goal. We didn’t let up. If we missed we got over it, but the next one was going to be a goal.”

The Big Green’s persistent attack led to a bevy of free kicks and corners, creating numerous chances and a couple near-scores. The Big Green’s constant offensive push finally paid off, when Kozlov, who leads the team with 10 goals scored on the season, netted Dartmouth’s lone goal with a well-placed header off a free kick after 78 minutes of action.

“We had one [free kick] similar to it right before, and we did not score, so I guess everyone’s thought is ‘the next one is going to be a goal,’” Kozlov said.

“You can’t sulk if you miss. As forwards, you have to keep moving forward and keeping thinking, ‘I’m going to score.’”

Head coach Ron Rainey expressed frustration with his team’s ability to put together a full game. A lack of focus and determination during the opening pieces of games has hampered Dartmouth throughout Ivy League play, Rainey said.

“College soccer is more than what you are doing strategically or technically,” Rainey said. “It’s the grit you bring over a 90-minute period, and, being totally honest, we didn’t have that grit in the first 20 minutes of the game.

We fought and were gritty as we went throughout the last 15 minutes of the first half and the last 45 minutes in the second half. But we’ve got to have that type of freedom in our play at the start of a game.”

Rainey also voiced concern over the players’ intensity and heart, insisting that the coaching staff will have to discuss which players are ready to start games and come out with full concentration.

“We’ll have to meet with some people and talk to them and see if they want that pressure of being in there at the start of games,” Rainey said. “You want people with the mindset of, ‘I’m going to make a great play here,’ not worrying about making a bad play.”

The team will face Harvard University this Saturday before returning to Burnham Field the next weekend to face Cornell University for its final game of the season.