HANOVER, N.H.- The Dartmouth women's soccer team picked up the first win of the Theresa Wagner era with a 2-1 win over regional rival, Vermont on Thursday evening at Burnham Field. The win gives the Big Green its seventh home-opening win in the last nine home openers.
Dartmouth played a dominating second half after battling to a 0-0 first half score. The Big Green outshot Vermont, 11-4, in the second frame and allowed just five Vermont shots for the game. Senior forward Aly O'Dea (Irvine, Calif.) led the offense with five shots, including two on frame while Tatiana Saunders (Rye, N.Y.) made one save in the Dartmouth victory.
Trailing 1-0 early in the second half, the Big Green tied the game in the 62nd minute of action on a goal from freshman forward Tasha Wilkins (Portland, Ore.). After a battle for the ball at the top of the Vermont box, Wilkins found the ball on her foot and pushed the ball just past Catamount goalkeeper, Sarah Leiby, who was caught out of position, for her first collegiate goal.
From that point, the Big Green picked up their intensity on both sides of the ball and created several scoring opportunities with sharp passing out of the back and through the midfield. O'Dea and sophomore midfielder Marina Moschitto (Andover, Mass.) each had looks at the goal that could have resulted in the go-ahead goal, but it was sophomore midfielder Chrissy Lozier (Fairfield, Conn.) that produced the game-winner in the 68th minute of action.
Lozier, who collected the ball in the midfield from Moschitto, dribbled deep into the Vermont corner and took a long crossing shot that looked to be headed just past the crossbar and out of play. Fortunately, the shot had just enough air underneath it to hit the crossbar and bounce just behind Leiby to give the Big Green the game-winner and its first win of the season.
The squads played a scoreless first half with plenty of scoring opportunities for the Big Green but it was Vermont who scored the first goal of the game. The Catamounts took a 1-0 lead in the 60th minute of action on a goal from Midori Eckstein assisted by Haley Marks.
The win pushes Dartmouth's unbeaten streak to 15 games against the Catamounts.
Dartmouth hits the road for a matchup with regional foe Rutgers on Sunday (Sept. 11). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m., at Rutgers' Yurack Field in Piscataway, N.J.
