Dartmouth Sweats Out Season Opener ... Overcomes Heat, Physical Defense to Win Contest at Penn
Dartmouth Match Report
Philadelphia, PA – The weather was unseasonably hot this Saturday as the Big Green rolled in to Fairmont Park in Philidelphia for their fall opener against the University of Pennsylvania. The team had risen early on Saturday morning to make the long journey down from Hanover; however, after shaking off their bus legs, the Dartmouth ruggers came out firing in their first match of the fall Ivy League season.
The game opened with Dartmouth receiving the first kickoff. In the first phase of play, Will Lehmann ’12 set the tone by weaving through the Penn defensive wall and finding his way to the try zone, giving Dartmouth an early lead. The kick went wide, leaving Dartmouth ahead 5-0. After that, Co-Captain Chris Downer ’11 ran in back to back tries of his own, and with one of the conversions by Derek Fish ‘12 going through the uprights Dartmouth led by 17. At this point, the Penn defense stepped up their game; Dartmouth adapted their offense well, with great carries by the forwards keeping the ball in Dartmouth hands. Will Lehmann ran another one in for Dartmouth, as did Captain Tommy Brothers ’11 in his fall season debut, and Fish put both kicks up giving Dartmouth 29 unanswered points. However, Penn refused to give up, as Chia picked off pass led to Penn’s first try of the game. Downer and Lehmann each responded with a try of their own, and Dartmouth led Penn 45-7 going into the half.
The second half saw several First-XV substitutions, but the Green kept the pressure on to the end. Scrum half Derek Fish ’12 ran in a try of his own and completed the conversion, putting the Green up 52-7. Inside Center Tom Sheridan ’11 fought through several tackles to deliver another perfectly centered try on Penn’s doorstep, and Fish made the kick for another 7 Dartmouth points. Finally, Will Lehmann carried the ball in for the final two tries of the game, bringing the final score to 78-7 Dartmouth. Lehmann’s tally for the day was an amazing six tries and 30 points.
Despite the scores, Penn Coach Eli Pearlman-Storch was upbeat about today’s contests. “We’re a young team” he said of the University of Pennsylvania side, “but we’re starting with a big group of guys, and we’re really looking forward to developing the program in the years ahead”. To that end, Coach Eli said it was “good to get out against a proficient side like Dartmouth; they definitely taught us a thing or two and we hope to take some of those lessons into the rest of our Ivy League season”.
As for the Dartmouth boys, the team bus rolled up to Princeton, New Jersey, tonight, where the lads will be resting up for their game against Princeton tomorrow morning, September 26th at 10:30 AM.
Charlie Grant, Dartmouth
Dartmouth 78
Tries: William Lehmann (6), Chris Downer (3), Tommy Brothers, Derek Fish, Thomas Sheridan
Conv: Derek Fish (9)
Penn 7
Tries: Chia
Conv: Chia
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Try by Bill Lehmann. DRFC 5-0 Penn.
Try by Chris Downer. DRFC 12- Penn 0
Try by Chris Downer. DRFC 17 - Penn 0
Try by William Lehmann. DRFC 24- Penn 0
Try by Tommy Brothers. DRFC 29 - Penn 0
Chia intercepts the pass and takes in for the Penn try. 7-31 Dartmouth.
Try by Chris Downer. DRFC 36 - Penn 7
Try by Will Lehmann. DRFC 43 - Penn 7
Try by Derek Fish. DRFC 52 - Penn 7
Try by Thomas Sheridan. DRFC 59- Penn 7
Try by Will Lehmann. DRFC 66- Penn 7
Try by Will Lehmann. DRFC 71- Penn 7
Try by Will Lehmann. DRFC 78 - Penn 7