Dartmouth Pulls Award from AIC in Crucial NIRA Clash

“I feel really good about where we are going into this stretch," said AIC Coach Nikki Ritter-Truxhal, whose team moved to a schedule of DI teams. "When we made the move we knew we were stepping into a level where we were going to be challenged every week, and that’s exactly what we wanted. Dartmouth, Brown, and Sacred Heart are great programs and we have a lot of respect for what they’ve built, but we’re also really confident in what we’re building at AIC.

"At the same time, I think there’s something really exciting about where we are as a program. We’re still earning people’s respect at this level, and I think our group embraces that. Nothing is going to be handed to us, and honestly, I think that fits who we are."

So AIC wants to compete, and they battled here, but didn't finish. AIC now has Brown, Sacred Heart, and Harvard, and they absolutely can do enough to get into the semis.