HARVARD 8, DARTMOUTH 1

The Crimson won handily against the Big Green, dropping only five games to a team that graduated only one player after finishing last season ranked seventh in the nation.

In the first matchup, McLaughlin was pitted against Dartmouth junior and two-time All-American Chris Hanson. After a strong performance, the Harvard sophomore came out with a 3-0 victory.

“[Hanson] is a bloody strong player,” Way said. “Brandon just played a remarkable match.”

After a rare stumble from Power in a five-game match against Big Green senior Nick Sisodia, the Crimson would not lose another match on the evening.

Koh defeated Chris Jung in straight games. After an 11-8 victory in his fifth and final contest, Hopcroft pulled out a 3-2 victory over Dartmouth’s Luke Lee.

Fellow rookie Olson then swept Big Green junior Robbie Maycock in straight matches, 11-9, 11-5, 11-7.

Way was particularly pleased with the play of Olson. The rookie is undefeated early in the season and has yet to drop a game.

“He’s showing a maturity beyond what I would expect at this juncture,” the coach said.

Despite two close games, junior Zeke Scherl swept Dartmouth senior Stephen Wetherill with an 11-5 third-game victory to continue Harvard’s winning streak.

Mullaney earned a sweep of his own, as did Kirby, who dropped only eight points en route to his win over Big Green senior Brian O’Toole.

Ma closed out Harvard’s victory with a convincing straight-game victory over Dartmouth’s Fletcher Pease.

Way was quick to credit Dartmouth, saying the score line didn’t properly reflect the Big Green’s talent.

“They’re actually a very strong team,” he said.

On the whole, the coach was pleased with his team’s play in its first Ivy League matchup of the young season.

“[The group] has been training very hard, and they clearly looked to be the fitter team,” he said. “I was very proud of our guys.”