DARTMOUTH COMPLETES COMEBACK TO WIN IVY RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP

(November 8, 2015) HANOVER, N.H. – The Dartmouth women's rugby team erased a 12-point halftime deficit to defeat Brown, 19-12, Sunday afternoon and win the 2015 Ivy Rugby Conference Championship at Brophy Field.

The Big Green (7-1) scored all 19 of their points after halftime with Audrey Perez's try in the 82nd minute breaking the 12-12 tie and giving Dartmouth the title. The try and conversion came in extra time and proved to be a back-breaker for the Bears (5-2) who were unable to hold off the resurgent home team.

"The conditions played a big role today," head coach Katie Dowty said. "It was really difficult to play out of our end and into the wind today, but after halftime, we still felt fresh and now we had the wind at our backs. That made us believe we could overcome a 12-point deficit."

"We really put it together this week," Dowty added. "The focus was great but our self-belief really kicked into effect."

Brown carried a 12-0 lead into the break thanks to a try each from Uzo Okoro and Kiki Morgan with a conversion from Rebecca Dahle on the game's opening score.

However, where the Bears were successful in the first match-up between these two teams earlier this fall - a strong defense near the tryline - was what proved to be a weakness on Sunday.

Dartmouth scored three tries in the second half with senior co-captains Tatjana Toeldte and Yejadai Dunn getting in from relatively close midway through the frame. Coupled with the first of Camille Johnson's two successful conversions of the day, the Dunn try in the 59th minute pulled the teams even and set up for the late-game dramatics.

With both teams playing solid defense in the midfield, the game seemed destined for overtime with the conference crown on the line.

However, the Big Green were not going to be denied by their rivals from Providence in the title game for the second year in a row. Gaining possession near midfield as the clock passed 80:00 and into extra time, Dartmouth kept pushing Brown further and further back into its own end.

That's when Perez took a feed from one of her teammates and drove through a wall of defenders for the try and the first lead of the afternoon for the Green and White. Johnson tacked on another two points to make it a seven-point game with another conversion to cap the comeback.

Dartmouth will now turn its attention to the national varsity tournament that begins next week. The Big Green will host Norwich Saturday, Nov. 14 at Brophy Field in the quarterfinals. Game time is scheduled for 11 a.m.

DARTMOUTH ADVANCES TO IVY CHAMPIONSHIP WITH WIN VS. PRINCETON

(November 7, 2015) HANOVER, N.H. – The Dartmouth women's rugby team defeated Princeton, 44-5, Saturday morning in the semifinal of the Ivy Rugby Conference Championship at Brophy Field.

The Big Green (6-1) advanced to Sunday's championship game at 1:30 p.m. where they will play Brown who beat Harvard, 27-17. Dartmouth took the regular season meeting, 8-5, between the two back in early October.

"We played the most exciting rugby we've played all season today and are exactly where we want to be headed into the final," head coach Katie Dowty said. "We're playing off each other, moving the ball well at pace, attacking spaces and, as always, taking great pride in our defense.

"The depth of our squad and commitment from every player on the team has allowed us to get invaluable playing experience at practice that is really starting to pay off," Dowty added. "Today was a team win through and through.

The home team dominated play and cycled in the entire line of subs after going into halftime with a 39-0 lead.

The usual suspects found their way on to the box score, with incredible runs by senior co-captain and All-American Yejadai Dunn and sophomore lock Ashley Zepeda. Dunn, taking advantage of a recurring short kickoff, ran back a try just seconds after the ball was put into play by Princeton's All-American Jessica Lu. The Tigers didn't attempt an onside kick again.

Rookie Kiera Pyke saw her first start at loose head prop, setting into the front row for all of the scrums which drove over the Princeton pack.

Senior tight head Sky Roehl stole a hook in the green zone which was momentarily converted to a try by Dunn again.

The only try scored by Princeton was off of a lineout turned maul in Dartmouth's red zone. The Tigers attempted to maul in a second try, but the ball was held up by fellow senior co-captain Tatjana Toeldte. Standout rookie Camille Johnson, who started in the centers on Saturday morning, drove back the only other serious threat to Dartmouth's red zone, almost singlehandedly executing a try line stand by driving back the opponents ten meters on the hit.

The Big Green were matched against Princeton after going 5-0 in regular season Ivy play, making them the top seed.

Brown, who narrowly beat third-place Harvard, 27-17, were forced to keep most of their starters on the field after a tight and physical match.