Following the Big Green Teams
GREEN NINE DEFEATS PENN; JEREMIAH NAMED HOCKEY COACH;JEFF TESREAU PICKS ALL-DARTMOUTH BASEBALL CLUB
COACH JEFF TESREAU, at the very brink of what we hope will be another Eastern Intercollegiate League baseball championship, leads with his chin this month with his All Dartmouth nine over the span of years the great Jeff has been at the helm.
And although Jeff always makes a bench dwindle in width when he sits down to carry on on the diamond, he realizes he's perched way out on the end this time and expects some- disagreement on a few of the selections. However, Jeff has weighed each choice carefully and concludes that the following lineup if fielded today on Memorial field would be his pick of the greatest.
Starting with the outfield Henry Bjorkman '25 is awarded Jeff's best nod for the center field post. Flanking Bjorkman Jeff has placed Bill Hart '36 and Carle Stanley '26 in right and left field respectively.
Jeff's summary of Stanley's ability gives him the call over all of the other outstanding left fielders in Dartmouth baseball history of recent years because of his strong throwing arm and heavy hitting average. Hart, in the opinion of Jeff, rates his call for his superior fielding genius and long range, if spotty, hitting at the plate. Hart is one of the two on Jeff's list we have personally seen in action, and his selection hits a "second the motion" chord.
Beginning at the beginning, or in other words first base, Jeff believes Dan Harris '25 would most certainly be the player he would call back out of the record books to play this berth for him. Harris is still remembered for his fielding ability around his base and for his tall batting averages over the seasons of 1923, '24 and '25.
At second Jeff hands top honors to Art Thurston '24. Jeff and other local Hanover residents recall Thurston's fielding and hitting strength, but more especially his man-sized hands which swung around the second base territory with the comprehensive swope of a steam shovel. There can be little doubt as to the greatest shortstop in Dartmouth's last two decades of baseballYankee Robert "Red" Rolfe. As each new infield flash graces across the Indian infield the first impulse of the present generation is to compare the new find with Rolfe, and so far, the comparison has always favored the "Red" of college days even though Jeff is convinced that Rolfe was just catching on to baseball as an undergraduate. When, and if, another Rolfe comes to Dartmouth, Joe McCarthy of the New York Americans offers a home in the country to the first man who telephones in the tip.
Third base on the merits of positions played on Big Green nines is given to Fran Smith '25. Jeff liked Smith's hustle and pepper at the last stop on the way home around the bases (I hate the word hot corner). In addition, Smith carved his niche in Dartmouth's baseball hall of fame with his exceptional base running and his fielding.
One of the two pitching assignments goes to Stan Lyon '24, one of the few light men to rate Jeff's most official O.K. as a twirler. In looking back over the annual pitching leaders he turns up, Jeff rates Lyon as the best "stuff" moundsman he has coached.
The second pitching selection needs no introduction to Indian ball fans of this era and to present Boston Red Sox enthusiasts (the Sox still have a few fans). He is Ted Olson, captain of his mates in 1936 and perhaps the greater of Jeff's two greats.
For catcher and captain of his mythical nine, Mr. Tesreau unhesitatingly selects Bart McDonough '30. McDonough according to Jeff combined a big league arm and hitting power with an ability to inspire his mates with his own driving leadership.
Bill Breckinridge, who played only his sophomore year for Dartmouth, Jeff calls the most sensational college pitcher he has ever seen in action. After leaving Dartmouth for the University of Oklahoma, Breckinridge joined Connie Mack and the A's for one brief starring year in the majors.
Strictly speaking, the above hardly fills the heading on the column, but this can be quickly remedied with the suggestion that the present ballsters have one or two nominations to make on their own behalf at the end of the current season and only time will tell how long Jeff's "all-team" will stand as written.
As the season gets underway, the present nine looks better than good. After a march through the southern teams in a schedule that served to train the Indians for the League campaign, Dartmouth opened at Pennsylvania with a 5-3 win. Ted Bruce, Carl "Mutt" Ray and Ben Lane shared the mound duties with Penn threatening in the very last inning. Since it was a first test of the question mark mound staff, the boys rate a passing grade for combined effort. Bruce went along smoothly until he tired and once the veteran senior finds his complete arm, Dartmouth's fears for a consistent pitching leader should vanish.
One of the "home run kings" has proven to be none other than Charles Tesreau who homered against Penn and also collected a four bagger during the southern tour.
In fact, the entire nine has hit extremely well to date with Brad Jenkins at third, Oscar Linden in right field, Tesreau at first, Bud McLaughlin at second, Eddie Casey in centerfield and catcher Joe Urban all above the .300 mark.
As yet, the fielding has been a little below par with several wild throws to first marring the box score columns to date. However, the Indians have been practising exclusively in the Alumni gym cage and have enjoyed few opportunities for smoothing out their throws on regulation diamonds.
Although everyone in Hanover remains optimistic over the outcome of the Eastern Intercollegiate League, early indications point to a far closer battle down the line than at any time in the last four years. Yale, with one of the best mound staffs, is a real threat to the Big Green supremacy; and Harvard is not to be counted out because of the slow start the Crimson has experienced. Princeton showed real batting strength in walloping the Harvards in the first game on the schedule and appears to be a club that will blow hot and cold at various times. This was especially shown when the same Tigers, after looking like champions against Harvard, lost three days later to Columbia, in what was reported to be a loosely played encounter.
Princeton and Dartmouth will meet in Hanover over Green Key week-end in a double feature that shapes up as a very "krooshial" encounter for Dartmouth aspirations. Should Dartmouth take both ends of this twin bill, the small margin of lead gained should be enough to hold off the charges of the other nines down the home stretch.
Another Dartmouth spring sport jumped into prominence during the Easter vacation when Coach Tommy Dent's lacrosse team held the strong Navy and John Hopkins squads to very respectable small scores.
Our first acquaintance with Dartmouth lacrosse came at Annapolis a year ago when the Midshipmen crucified the Indians, 21-1. Naturally this was a very poor introduction to a universally popular sport and actually scared the writer into complete silence on the Big Green lacrosse activities. But while we were going around with our eyes shut hoping no one would even discover we had a team, along comes Coach Dent with the best team he has coached in years by his own say so.
Most of the new era in lacrosse here belongs to a fine sophomore group which arrived on the varsity this spring and to a few holdover veterans of last year. Senior Jake Shafer, captain of his mates for the second straight year, and again has taken his place at point position. Jake is the product of the very heart of American lacrosse interest, Baltimore, and has been one the Big Green's best players for three years.
Still another senior, Mort Karp, is back at his coverpoint berth after three varsity campaigns. The juniors who have gained starting positions are Henry Molloy at center, and Fred Pickering at outhome.
The sophomore delegation which has backboned the improvement of the team is headed by Henry Hastings in the goal. Hastings, according to Tommy Dent, already ranks as one of the best goalies in eastern lacrosse and the former St. Pauls ace has been given all-American possibilities by his coach and others who know their way around in lacrosse circles. Hastings is also another Baltimore boy.
Bob Catherine, attack, Jim Fuller, attack, Lou Merriam, attack, Harry Goldberg, attack, Hilleary Hoskinson, center, Bob Eckel, attack, Bill Parkhill, defense, and Joe Crehan, attack, complete the best class attack on lacrosse Dartmouth has entered in several years.
Another Dartmouth sport graduated from the struggling stage during the month when the Dartmouth Rowing Club was able to announce a four race schedule for the Big Green oarsmen.
Two races are listed for the varsity eights. The first one against Williams on the Connecticut River on the Saturday of Green Key, April go, marks the first intercollegiate crew race to be held at Hanover.
The Indians after making this history for the cause of rowing at Dartmouth, will meet the Yale third varsity at Derby, Conn., on May 15. The freshman boat will travel to Princeton for a regatta with the Rutgers freshman and Princeton's second freshman shell on May 8. On May 22 the freshman will end their season against the Harvard second freshman shell at Cambridge.
Ex-Governor Alvan T. Fuller's generous gift of over $2000 during the winter has placed the Dartmouth crew on a firmer financial basis and the new boat house named after the former governor of Massachusetts gives the Indian navy new comfort and previously undreamed of accommodations for their sport.
James Bonnyman, Cincinnati merchant and father of James Bonnyman Jr. '38, has also made great contribution to the Dartmouth crew with a presentation of $400 received early in the month.
