Yale Athletics

The Yale women’s basketball team (7–17, 4–7 Ivy) ventured to Leede Arena in Hanover, New Hampshire, for their second battle against Dartmouth College (7–16, 1–10 Ivy) of the 2023–24 season. 

The Bulldogs hoped to dust off the two losses they surrendered to Princeton University (20–4, 10–1 Ivy) and the University of Pennsylvania (13–11, 5–6 Ivy) from the previous weekend. With a win against Dartmouth, the team was keeping their hopes for a bid in the Ivy League tournament alive.

The last time these two teams met was Jan. 20, when the Bulldogs barely held on to the win, 48–46. This time, they ensured that their lead would be far out of reach by the time the clock wound down to zero.

In the first quarter of the game, the Blue and White quickly jumped out to an eight-point lead, one they never lost throughout the entirety of the contest. It seemed the Bulldogs rarely missed a basket, often going on multiple hot streaks at a time. The lead grew as a result of a team effort, where five Bulldogs contributed to the tally of points in the first, and even more played defensive roles on the court. The first ended with the momentum skewed heavily toward Yale and only heading further in that direction with the score at 21–14.

Although the second quarter was less offensively productive for the Bulldogs, their defense proved proactive and effective against Dartmouth, holding them to only six points through the entire ten minutes of the period. More Bulldogs stepped up to the line and added to the point total, including Nyla McGill ’25, who went two-for-two at the free throw line. As the Blue and White ran off into their locker room at the half, they led 34–20.

Coming back onto the court at the sound of the third-quarter buzzer, the Bulldogs quickly went to work, adding six unanswered points in a row to their lead from three different players. Successful steals and rebounds by Christen McCann ’25 and McGill led to offensive successes that extended the Bulldog margin significantly. The Big Green defense had no answer for Brenna McDonald ’24 and Jenna Clark ’24, who racked on basket after basket to lead their team to victory, 78–42.

McDonald and Clark were the main culprits for the stacks of points that Yale amassed throughout the game, though everyone on the court played a hand in the resounding victory against the Big Green. McDonald and Clark both earned double-doubles, with Clark banking 17 points and 12 assists and McDonald registering a career-high 30 points and 12 rebounds. Mackenzie Egger ’25 and McGill combined for 14 rebounds.

The Yale women’s basketball team looks forward to their homecoming to John J. Lee Amphitheater in New Haven to face Cornell (7–16, 1–10 Ivy) on March 1 at 4 p.m.