Hockey
Coach Eddie Jeremiah and his hockey forces did it again. That is to say, they captured their seventh Pentagonal League title in the last nine years it has been up for contention; they again met the Canadian champion for the North American ice crown and once more they were invited to take part in the N.C.A.A. tournament at Colorado Springs. At this writing, the team and its dynamic coach are on the way to Canada to meet the University of Montreal, having just disposed of Harvard in a playoff game in Boston for the Pentagonal crown.
In making an almost miraculous comeback gainst enormous odds, Jeremiah and his men deserve every nice thing that can be said about them. Faced with a losing season for the first time in a decade, the doughty Indian coach and his scrappy pupils refused to admit defeat and fought their way back to what everyone hereabouts felt was their rightful place atop the hockey heap. An almost complete lack of ice on Dartmouth's natural-ice rink eliminated any possibility of satisfactory practice until the middle of January. As a result of this pitiable state of affairs, the Indians dropped three early-season games to Colgate, Harvard and Brown. With three defeats in their first six games and two of those losses coming at the hands of league teams, it appeared that Dartmouth was finished as a major hockey power. But the Jeremiah-men had just begun to fight.
A solid freeze in mid-January gave the team a few days of good practice before the Yale game. Lo, the poor Indian proved that he was not yet dead. He whipped the cocky Elis, 6-2. A trip to Boston resulted in a 3-2 victory over Boston University, although the Dartmouth boys were still far from top shape and were hanging on desperately at the finish. Mighty Boston College invaded Hanover and received its first and only defeat of the season, 4-2. Still mightier McGill, fresh from a 14-0 triumph over Harvard, fell before the thoroughly aroused Big Green, 9-6. Princeton was crushed under a 12-2 onslaught and then came the toughest assignment of the season. Harvard, Brown and Yale had to be met away from Hanover in the space of four days. Harvard and Brown had been two of the Green's conquerors and Yale, on its home ice, is always a tough nut to crack. But the Dartmouth boys did what seemed to be the impossible. They whipped Harvard 4-3, edged Brown, 3-2 in overtime, and shut out Yale, 4-0. Unfortunately they had to meet Boston College again two days after this grueling trip and the tired Indians lost a 7-4 decision—their first defeat after eight straight triumphs. Despite the discouraging loss to the Eagles, Coach Jeremiah's boys bounced right back with a display of brilliant hockey that all but blasted Boston University, Army, Williams, and Princeton off the ice. The Princeton victory gave Dartmouth a 6-2 league record and clinched a tie for the title.
Meanwhile Harvard had rebounded to win its three remaining league contests to tie the Indians for the lead and for the third time the teams met—in Boston. Dartmouth left no doubt as to who was the better team by downing the Crimson, 7-2. to win the Pentagonal crown once again.
As a tuneup for the Harvard clash, Jeremiah arranged the second Alumni-Varsity game, with proceeds going to the Mary Hitchcock Hospital. The Alumni, led by Danny Sullivan, who notched four goals and Dick Rondeau, who scored two, gave the varsity a bad fright before bowing, 11-8, in a spectacular contest. With a lineup including the above-mentioned greats and Sam Snow, Harpo Walsh, Jack Kilmartin, Whitey Campbell, George Pulliam, Junie and Bobby Merriam, Bill Remsen and Doc Sanders, the Alumni fielded a formidable sextet that thrilled the crowd with its passing and stick-handling. Dick McMahon, freshman goalie and captain, starred in the nets for the graduates and gave promise of great future play as a varsity team-member.
The triumphs over the Alumni and Harvard gave the team an all-over record of 17-4 going into the game with Montreal. In looking back over the season, it is hard to single out individuals for special praise. It was a team of stars who cooperated and helped one another to make success possible. Captain Dick Desmond, Dartmouth's great goalie, was an inspiring leader. He allowed but 2.6 goals per game to the best collegiate teams in the East. Mike Thayer and Bob Gray were the defensive stars—often playing 60 minutes of hard hockey without relief. Thayer played in several games with injuries which would have sidelined a lesser man and proved that he is one of Dartmouth's all-time great defensemen. The marvelous Riley brothers—Joe and Bill—playing their last season for Dartmouth teamed with the brilliant sophomore Cliff Harrison to form the greatest attacking line in the United States. This line accounted for 196 points—a new national scoring record. The old mark of 191 was held by Rondeau. Jack Riley and Bill Harrison (Cliff's older brother) since 1941-42. Bill Riley scored 38 assists for a new Dartmouth mark in this department; Joe Riley tallied 74 points and Bill 71 to approach Rondeau's 77 points in one season (the national record). Behind this great line was another made up of Arnie Oss, Walter Crowley and Spif Kerivan. As the season drew to a close this line equalled the first line in its play and was instrumental in the playoff triumph over Harvard. Still another line of Bill Dow, Mike Choukas and Bob Amirault played aggressive, hard hockey that helped wear down Dartmouth's rivals and set them up for the first two lines. Charlie Bailey and Bill Stout showed defensive promise for the future and Hugh Brower, Bill Taylor Howie Richmond, Jack Sisson and Tom Warner saw frequent offensive duty.
The season proved one thing in par. ticular. Dartmouth is handicapped by playing on natural ice which is at the mercy of the temperature outdoors. Every rival plays on artificial ice and teams such as Harvard, Brown, Yale, Princeton, Boston College, Boston University and others get a two months' start on Dartmouth's team. Dartmouth had six games cancelled at the season's beginning and in opening games the boys were in miserable shape. With a brilliant coach and a high-spirited team that deserves the best, Dartmouth's facilities are sadly behind the times. The unsolved problem of a satisfactory rink is a thorn in the side of Dartmouth hockey fortunes in the future.
,-PFATFST ONE-TWO PUNCH IN INTERCOLLEGIATE HOCKEY: Bill Riley, right, and his brother, Joe, who j J rolleae hockey careers this season after pacing Dartmouth to two successive league t.tles. 8.1 l se"t a new Dartmouth record of 38 assists, while Joe's season point total of 74 compares favorably with the all-time record of 77 held by Dick Rondeau.
During the absence of Sports Editor"Red" Merrill '26, who is now in Europe0n faculty leave, "Roddy" Wolbarst '43,director of publicity for the DCAC, haskindly consented to write the Green Teamssection for the balance of the year.
