NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- Facing one of the top offensive threats in the Ivy League in one of the league's toughest venues, the Yale women's lacrosse team held its own for more than 40 minutes Saturday. The Bulldogs were within 5-4 of Dartmouth at Scully-Fahey Field, where the Big Green had started the season 4-0. But with Yale in the midst of what could have been a game-changing rally in the second half, Dartmouth midfielder Jaclyn Leto -- the Ivy League's leading goal scorer -- scored off a nice spin move in front to extend the lead to 6-4, and that deficit would ultimately prove too much for Yale to overcome. The Big Green came away with a 10-5 win.

Dartmouth (6-6, 2-3 Ivy League) had been having an up-and-down season entering Saturday, with three losses in a row after an upset win at home vs. No. 17 Penn. But Leto has been a constant threat, and she scored three times in the first half as the Big Green jumped out to a 5-2 lead. Yale's goals came from junior attacker Hope Hanley and sophomore attacker Kiwi Comizio (who assisted on Hanley's goal).

At the start of the second half, though, Yale (5-8, 2-3 Ivy League) appeared to have regrouped. Senior attacker Lauren Wackerle scored off an assist by sophomore midfielder Madeleine Gramigna less than 90 seconds in, and Comizio scored on a free position at 23:46. Were it not for a shot by Comizio that hit the post at 25:30, the game might have been tied.

Instead, Leto got the chance to go to work on building the lead. The Yale defense made life tough for her all day, limiting her to just five shots from the field (she was also 1-for-2 on free positions). Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, Leto scored on three of those shots from the field -- including the one at 18:49 that gave her team a 6-4 lead. That was her 42^nd goal of the year.

Five minutes later, Leto struck again, this time using a pinpoint pass to midfielder Taryn Deck in front of the cage for a goal that made it 7-4.

Wackerle scored at 8:47 to pull Yale back within two, but right after that the game quickly turned back in Dartmouth's favor. Midfielder Elizabeth Mastrio grabbed the draw control and darted down the field for her third goal of the game, putting Dartmouth back ahead by three just nine seconds after Wackerle's goal.

Draw controls were another area where Leto made a contribution, nabbing three to help Dartmouth to an 11-6 edge in that category -- the first time this season Yale has been held to fewer than nine draws in a game. Senior attacker Nicole Daniggelis got the draw after Mastrio's goal, but a turnover ended that possession for Yale. A yellow card on senior defender Kate Walker then left the Bulldogs without one of their best defenders, and Dartmouth extended the lead to 9-5 on a goal by attacker Campbell Probert with 5:16 left.

After a Bulldogs turnover in the Dartmouth zone with four minutes to play, the Big Green got a goal from attacker Kierra Sweeney with 2:05 remaining to make the final 10-5.

Sophomore goalkeeper Sydney Marks finished with six saves for the Bulldogs, while Big Green goalie Charlotte Wahle tied her season high with 10 saves. Walker had a game-high five ground balls.

The loss drops Yale into a tie with Dartmouth for fifth in the Ivy League standings, with only the top four teams making the Ivy League Tournament. The Bulldogs have two more regular season games, starting next Saturday with a visit from Penn.

Report by Sam Rubin '95 (sam.rubin@yale.edu), Yale Sports Publicity