The Dartmouth Women's Water Polo team traveled back to Middlebury for the second and last regular-season tournament. Despite the fact that the team was still recovering from finals period and that Fanis could not be there to coach us, the team performed well, achieving a 4-0 record for the weekend. This perfect record is definitely partially due to the wonderful job captains Grace McDevitt ('14, #4), Lisa Rennels ('14, #9), and Shelley Wenzel ('14, #1) and president Kellie MacPhee ('14, #5) did not only in the pool, but also on the deck making substitutions, calling time-outs, and giving advice to the team.
The team's first opponent was the Boston College Eagles. Although the game was close, Dartmouth was in the lead for all four quarters, resulting in a final score of 6-5. Dartmouth goals were scored by PJ Bigley ('17, #15), Amelia Nobel (DMS, #10), Lisa Rennels with 2 ('14, #9), Meghan Christie ('17, #8), and Katie Lachance ('15, #3).
After a short break, Dartmouth was back in the pool to face the Coast Guard Academy for the second time this season. Dartmouth again beat the Bears, with a final score of 12-2. Highlights from the game included Shelley Wenzel's ('14, #1) 100% saving percentage and Margaret Rollins' ('15, #2) goal, despite having been off during the winter term.
After a wonderful dinner (thank you Mrs. Rollins and McDevitts!), the team was happy to sleep at the Middlebury Inn without the usual weight of homework to be done. The team was definitely well-rested for the second day of the tournament.
Sunday's first game featured Dartmouth versus Northeastern; the Big Green came away victorious, winning 11-7. The goals were evenly spread amongst the team: Grace McDevitt ('14, #4), Meghan Christie ('17, #8), Lisa Rennels ('14, #9), and Kristen Flint ('14, #12) each scored 2 goals and PJ Bigley ('17, #15) scored 3. In addition to some great offense, Dartmouth's defense was especially effective in this game, as Grace Russo ('14, #1A) never saw a shot on goal.
The last game of the tournament was against the host team, Middlebury. After an intense end to regulation time, the score was tied at 5-5. Both teams had played hard over the course of the four quarters, but were reinvigorated by the thought of overtime. By CWPA regulations, the first round of overtime consists of two 3-minute periods. Although a nail-biting situation to be sure, Dartmouth quickly scored with an outside shot from Katie Lachance ('15, #3) and capitalized on the next man-up opportunity with a well-placed shot from Kellie MacPhee ('14, #5), resulting in a final score of 7-5.
With a perfect 8-0 record for the regular season, Dartmouth Women's Water Polo is seeded first in the rankings for the New England Division Tournament, taking place at Williams College, April 12-13. Before the team is ready for the championship tournament, however, we have a lot of hard work to do, both on Training Trip in California and in Hanover. The team will definitely be ready and excited to play!