Back on Track

A group of talented but untested freshmen hopes to restore the luster to women's lacrosse.

FOR FIVE CONSECUTIVE YEARS THE Dartmouth women's lacrosse team won or shared the Ivy League title. But last season, while looking for a sixth straight Ivy championship, the Big Greens 10-6 record failed to pass muster.

This season's squad (16 of the 23 players are pictured at right) has high expectations to return to glory. Coach Amy Patton, 37, thinks the disappointment of last year's fourth-place finish may serve as a "kick in the pants," she says, for the team's 12 returning veterans. "When you're on top it's easy to lose sight of what it takes to get there."

Among those returning are co-captains Lana Smith '04 and Whitney Jamison '03, who led last year's squad in scoring. But a highly touted crop of 11 new recruits could be an even bigger key to the teams success. Freshmen include defender Andrea Smith from Maryland, an Academic Ail-American; goalkeeper Devon Wills of Colorado, who led her high school to a state championship two years ago; and Sarah Frazier, a defender from Pennsylvania who follows in the footsteps of her lacrosse-playing sisters, Melissa '00 and Amy '02. With players such as these, the team undoubtedly has talent. "But are they coachable?" asks Patton. "Do they want to get better? Do they have a passion for the game?" Only time will tell.

Patton's challenge is to transform her gifted athletes into a team. And that takes time. "You just can't beat experience," says Patton, who is heading into her nth season at Dartmouth. "We have these freshmen touted as superstars, but I believe so much in experience. That is one of our biggest challenges: We need to get these players to grow up."

The players are confident. "No matter how young we are, our heart and determination make up for our lack of experience," says defender Kristi Soroka '05.

And if there's anything Pattons players have, it's heart. "I really think this team is going to play hard for each other and play hard for Dartmouth pride. That's just the kind of people they are," she says.

The women's lacrosse season gets underway March 1 at home against the University of New Hampshire (see below).

Kristi Soroka '05 Defender Aston, Pennsylvania

"Winning a tough game is an indescribable feeling. It's so great because there are 20 other people feeling the exact same way you are."

Andrea Smith '06 Defender Annapolis, Maryland

"I'm really looking forward to beating Princeton, of course, and Maryland, because that's where I'm from."

Chelsea Voake '06 Defender Norwich, Vermont

"When I play lacrosse, I am able to forget everything else in my life and just focus on the little yellow ball. Giving the game all you have and then some is the most rewarding experience of all."

Elizabeth Cuneo '06 Midfielder Summit, New Jersey

"For me the thrill of the game lies in the moments in which you completely surrender to your body and forgo all thought."

Whitney Jamison '03 Attacker/Co-Captain Baltimore, Maryland

"It's a really unique experience to be able to lead a group of your closest friends, It's also more timeconsuming than it first appears. The glory comes with seeing your teammates succeed tangibly and intangibly."

Sarah Frazier '06 Defender Berwyn, Pennsylvania

"It's so great to be surrounded by girls who can make so much fun out of nothing."

Kelly Roy '06 Goalkeeper Sykesville, Maryland

"I'm really excited to play against the schools that I had watched on TV and idolized as a younger player."

Leah Skypeck '05 Midfielder Longmeadow, Mass.

"My greatest achievement as a member of this team has been stepping outside my comfort zone to take positive risks in the pursuit of becoming a better player, teammate and friend."

Devon Wills '06 Goalkeeper Denver, Colorado

"When I put on my uniform for the first time and am sitting in the locker room, feeling sick to my stomach, listening to Amy, I'll know it's the big time."

Casey Hazel '06 Midfielder Reisterstown, Maryland

"I just love the game, the sport, and I love playing. I enjoy the high level of competition and the fast-paced style."

r, 's 0 Katieanne Christian '05 Midfielder Agawam, Mass.

"Being on this team involves dedication, trust and commitment to each other and to becoming a better player both on and off the field."

Sarah Sanborn '05 Midfielder Owings Mills, Maryland

"Playing against big rivals is exciting mostly because you suddenly feel so much a part of a tradition greater than yourself and your own experience."

Kristen Zimmer '06 Midfielder Alexandria, Virginia

"It is amazing to be part of this recruiting class. I love that there are so many of us and each person brings something different and awesome to the team."

Katherine Fahey '06 Attacker Sands Point, New York

"I never knew the meaning of the word 'teamwork' until fall ball. We were all so tired, not to mention hungry, but everyone expended even more energy just to cheer for each other."

Catharine Morgan '06 Defender Concord, Mass.

"Some of us were eating breakfast together and we started assigning everyone a Disney character for their personality. Mine is Bambi, because I fall a lot."

Ann Leibovitz '06 Midfielder Boulder, Colorado

"Hard work is pretty much the only type of work involved in being a member of this team, but it is fun work at the same time."

March 1: New Hampshire April 11: Syracuse March 5: Massachusetts April 13: Cornell March 18: Maryland April 19: at Pennsylvania March 21: at James Madison April 23: Harvard March 29: at Yale April 26: Princeton March 30: at Columbia May 2: at North Carolina April 4: at Boston University May 4: at Duke April 6: Brown Team members not pictured at right: Molly Jenkins '04, Kate Killen '04, Erin Osborn '05, Elizabeth Right '04, Lana Smith '04, Rowan Smith '04, Jaclyn Strife '04