Q&A with Deputy Athletic Director Robert Ceplikas on the Northwestern Unionization Case and its Impact on Dartmouth

After football players at Northwestern University, with assistance from the National College Players Association advocacy group, moved in January to unionize, the university’s administration fought their efforts with legal action. I sat down last week with Dartmouth's Deputy Athletics Director Robert Ceplikas ’78 to discuss the Northwestern unionization case and its relation to Dartmouth athletics.

JS: How do you think the Northwestern Unionization case, which has received national attention, will impact Dartmouth?

RC: It won't have any direct impact because it only applies to athletic scholarships so the Ivies are immune from that since we don't offer athletic scholarships. Now this is my opinion, but I don't think it will hold up in the long run.

JS: There was an interview with the President Emeritus of Northwestern where he said the school could drop its sports programs. Do you think that would happen?

RC: I think that's a little extreme. I think it's a lot more likely Northwestern would maintain its programs and drop its scholarships.

JS: Could the right to unionize be extended to non-scholarship athletes?

RC: I have not seen any interpretation that would lead non-scholarship athletes to be affected by this anyway. The very basis of the ruling was that it's the scholarship that makes the student an employee.

JS: What if the case does make it's way to the Supreme Court and stands?

RC: Let's just say, hypothetically, that the ruling does get upheld all the way to the Supreme Court, then the main impact on the Ivies will be that the really selective, private institutions that are most affected, the Northwesterns, the Dukes, the Stanfords, they'll suddenly be looking for a very different type of athletic conference to compete in. They'll drop their athletic scholarships and they'll look for a conference like the Ivy League. It's not inconceivable, even though again I don't think this will actually happen to begin with, but if it did, it wouldn't be inconceivable that some of those schools would come knocking on the Ivy League's door and express some kind of interest, if not joining the Ivy League itself, in making some scheduling agreements because they'll be looking for competition from other non-scholarship schools that have similar academic philosophies. That could be a pretty major change if it ever came to that.

Dartmouth Softball Sweeps Yale Bulldogs, Improves Conference Record to 12-0

(via The Dartmouth)

Dartmouth softball continues to roll through its competition, extending its win streak to 13 and maintaining a perfect 12-0 Ivy League record.

One week after sweeping all for of its Ivy League South competitors, Dartmouth swept its first Ivy League North foe, establishing itself as the team to beat in the Ivy League.

Several Dartmouth players turned in big performances this weekend – Maddie Damore ’17, Kristen Rumley ’15 and Morgan McCalmon ’16.

Saturday was essentially Damore’s coming out party as she led Dartmouth with seven RBIs batted in on three home runs. Damore became the 63rd player in NCAA history to homer three times in a game and the first since April.

“[Damore’s] capable of it and we’ve known that,” head coach Rachel Hanson said. “She’s been having a little bit of a down time so this was kind of a good confidence booster for her. That’s the kind of hitter we know she can be.”

Damore is the first Ivy League freshman to homer three times since April 13, 2001, when Cornell’s Kate Varde registered three against Dartmouth.

Rumley hit the game-winning walk-off single that scored Damore in Saturday’s Game One. Rumley earned five hits on the day and pitched eight innings on Saturday before picking up wins in both of Sunday’s games.

"She's a great all-around player,” Hanson said. “She can hit, she can pitch, she can play defense. She's a great kid and very composed."

McCalmon picked up both wins Saturday and increased her hitting streak to 13 games, and provided crucial run support in Sunday’s Game Two. 

Dartmouth needed nine innings to pull off a 3-2 victory in Saturday’s Game One in what rapidly turned into a pitcher’s duel.

Rumley and senior Kristen Leung both turned in eight innings of work on the mound before being relieved. Although Rumley outperformed Leung, striking out more batters and allowing fewer hits, the score remained tied 2-2 entering the ninth. Rumley also pitched fewer times, 103, than Leung’s 118.

Normally, Dartmouth has been able to score early in the first or second inning, but Leung kept Dartmouth’s batting order shut down until the fourth. At that point, Karen Chaw ‘17’s double scored Katie McEachern ’16 before Chaw herself raced home on Kelsey Miller ‘16’s double to give Dartmouth a 2-0 advantage.

"We've got good athletes but approach is key,” Hanson said. “We're taking big cuts and swinging hard and they're looking for the right pitch to hit and swinging hard at it."

Rumley continued to shut down Yale’s batters until the seventh when sophomore Lauren Delgadillo belted a two-run humer to tie the score and send the game into extra innings.

After the game-tying homer, Hanson said she told her players to just come right back.

“After the game it was a message of 'we let them hang around a little too long,” Hanson said. “We gave them the opportunity to take it back. So we need to be a little more aggressive early in the game."

Rumley stayed in the game until the ninth when Hanson pulled Rumley, who was tired after throwing 103 pitched, for McCalmon, who retired the side.

McCalmon, the reigning Ivy League Player of the Week, then earned the win when Rumley continued to leave her mark on the game when she scored Damore for the walk-off run and win.

McCalmon continued to play from the mound for Game Two, throwing a complete game as Dartmouth dominated Yale 10-1, winning in six innings. McCalmon surrendered just one run all game in her winning effort – a second inning score off a wild pitch that tied the game at one.

Dartmouth’s batting order, led by Damore, controlled the rest of the game, starting with scoring on a walk in the first.

The fireworks really started in the fourth when Damore sent the ball over the left field wall for three. Damore homered a second time in the fifth for two more runs to make the score 8-1. She ended the game with one final home run to left-center to increase Dartmouth’s lead to nine.

"I was pretty calm,” Damore said. “I wasn't expecting to see any good pitches after the first two at bats but I was ready to go up there swinging and she gave me a nice one."

Moving on to Sunday’s Game One, Dartmouth defeated Yale 5-1, scoring all five runs in the third inning.

Yale actually led 1-0 after the first but that would be the only offense Rumley allowed as she pitched all seven innings, giving up just five runs and two walks.

In the third, Yale surrendered five runs on seven hits to Dartmouth. Dartmouth loaded the bases and scored with regularity as four different batters scored runners. 

Yale would shut out Dartmouth’s batting order for the final three innings but Yale’s batters were unable to mount a comeback. 

The sun finally started coming out for the final game of the weekend.

McCalmon started the game and pitched a clean first inning before surrendering a two-shot home run and a run off a single in the second to put Dartmouth in a 3-0 hole, Yale’s largest lead all weekend.

Hanson said she and the team don’t worry too much about the scoreboard.

“For us it’s just about playing at a high level every inning,” Hanson said. “When you have the ability to score runs, you’re not putting extra pressure on yourself and just focusing on the game.”

McCalmon would then cut the deficit to two when she scored on a double by Damore, just beating the throw to the plate. McCalmon almost missed out on the scoring chance when she barely reached first as the ball arrived. 

“First thing I did when I got to the dugout was tell my teammates, ‘and you said I was slow,’” McCalmon said. “It was a big moment and I trusted Coach and she made the good call. Anything could have happened and I got in there.”

The first-base umpire ruled McCalmon safe as Delgadillo’s foot was not on the bag, but from the home-plate umpire’s perspective, McCalmon was out. Both umpires met for a brief conference before ruling McCalmon safe, setting her up for the score.

McCalmon felt confident that the umpires were going to rule in her favor since the first-base umpire had the best vantage point.

Karen Chaw ’17 then scored Damore to cut Yale’s lead to one before Yale successfully retired the side.

In the fifth, Yale nearly expanded on its lead by loading the bases with two outs. Hanson pulled McCalmon for the final batter of the inning and replaced her with Rumley, who retired the side.

Momentum quickly swung Dartmouth’s way. In response, Dartmouth loaded the bases in the bottom of the fifth with just one out as McEachern went to the plate. Unfortunately, McEachern never reached first by popping out, but right before McEachern’s pop-out, Megan Averitt ‘15 scored on a wild pitch, just beating freshman pitcher Lindsey Efflandt to the plate to tie the game.

McCalmon followed McEachern, and with two runners on base and two outs, McEachern singled, but more importantly scored both runners, to put Dartmouth up 5-3.

For the final two innings, Rumley was perfect, allowing not a single hit, walk or error to blemish her relief effort as she picked up her 13th win of the season.

Dartmouth Softball Squeaks Out Close Win Over Boston University

In preparation for a four-game series this weekend against Yale, Dartmouth squeaked out a close 5-4 non-conference win over Boston University Wednesday.

Three pitchers pitched from the mound with Ashley Sissel ’17 starting before ceding control to Alex Jarvis ’16, who picked up her second win this season. Sissel allowed six hits and two runs to go with four strikeouts, while Jarvis allowed just two runs on two hits. However, the two runs allowed BU to climb back into the game, and was what prompted the switch to Morgan McCalmon ’16.

McCalmon, the Ivy League Player of the Week for the past two weeks, earned the save by holding BU scoreless the final two innings. She finished having allowed one hit after facing seven batters.

Sophomore Lauren Hynes pitched an uneven, albeit complete, game in a losing effort to go 12-11 on the season. Hynes finished with 10 hits, five runs, six walks, three errors and two strikeouts.

As has been Dartmouth’s modus operandi since its conference schedule started, the Big Green started the scoring in the first with a Katie McEachern ’16 single down the right field line. Kristen Rumley ’15 beat the throw home to score and put Dartmouth in an early 1-0 lead.

Neither team scored until the fourth inning when BU took its first and only lead of the game.

BU manufactured its equalizing score by slowing working around the bases following a bunt by freshman Brittany Younan. Younan eventually scored before when freshman Gabi Martinez singled to left field. BU scored once more when senior Amy Ekart reached home after senior Brittany Clendenny hit into a double play.

Dartmouth responded almost right away when Alex St. Romain ’14 homered to center field to tie the game. Dartmouth slowly built a two run lead over the course of the inning as McCalmon and Alyssa Jorgensen ’17 scored an unearned run on a muffed throw.

After three quick BU outs, Dartmouth returned to the plate to score what would turn out to be the game-winning run. Rumley’s single to right field scored Jorgensen to make the score 5-2.

In a valiant effort by BU’s batting order, BU cut the deficit to one with scores by Ekart and Martinez. Ekart scored on a fielder’s choice while Martinez reached home on a fielding error by Karen Chaw ‘17. BU ultimately ended its attempt to tie the game in the sixth when senior Jayme Mask was called out at third for leaving the base early.

In the final frame, with the pressure cranked up high, McCalmon coolly struck out the first two BU batters before a ground out closed the game.