The Look Ahead: Week 1

BY ALLISON ODHE The Dartmouth Staff

Friday, March 31

The softball team is hoping to continue their winning streak as they travel to New York City to play against Columbia University at 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The softball team hosted the University of Pennsylvania this past weekend in their frst Ivy League conference series and swept, starting their conference season 3-0. These big wins came from a huge performance at the plate by Alaana Panu ’25, who hit two walk-ofs during the weekend,building upon the team’s momentum.

Saturday, April 1

The men’s lacrosse team will push a win at their game against Cornell University this weekend in Ithaca, New York, whichstarts at 12 p.m. . Men’s lacrosse (6-1) had a huge win over the weekend against Harvard University, marking their frst Ivy League Conference win since 2015. Dartmouth made it to overtime, when Colin McGill ’25 scored the winning goal to end the game with a

BY WILL DEHMEL

Until he steps out the door, there are few ways to predict what color hat he’ll be wearing.

While it was pink on Friday, March 11 — salmon, his brother insists — today, it might be orange. Your guess is as good as mine.

For Larry Lawrence ’80, who was honored March 11 as a member of the 2023 Class of Legends of Ivy League Basketball, wearing many hats is more than just an expression.

The many diferent hats, which promote the Black Heart Foundation, signify just one of Lawrence’s many endeavors of the hardwood court. Started in 2000, the UK- and US-registered charity helps support students that grew up similarly to Lawrence, he explained.

“It helps provide kids going from high school to college with funding to be able to go to school,” Lawrence said. “Be it a club, transportation — whatever that kid may need to be at the next level.”

So far, the foundation — of which Lawrence is a trustee — has endowed more than 500 students. The goal, Lawrence said, is to “try to get to 1,000 — and after that, to 5,000.”

Lawrence’s charity explains why for him, this honor is bigger than basketball.

“It’s a tremendous honor, of course, to be recognized as someone very unique in the history of the Ivy League and Dartmouth score of 10-9.

Women’s lacrosse is looking to break their 0-2 conference record streak when they play Harvard at Scully-Fahey Field at 2 p.m., following their loss to Boston College earlier this week.

This weekend, men’s and women’s track will travel to Storrs, Connecticut to compete in the University of Connecticut’s Dog Fight. The teams had a busy spring break, starting their outdoor season with many impressive performances. Notably, Jake Dalton ’23 broke the 32-year-old hammer throw school record with a throw of 64.78 m at the Hurricane Collegiate Invitational at the University of Miami.

The women’s rowing team will travel to Camden, New Jersey, to compete in their frst race of the season at the Doc Hosea Invitational on the Cooper River.

The men’s heavyweight rowing team will also compete in their frst race against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the College of the Holy Cross in Boston, Massachusetts.

Hoping to continue their success streak, the sailing team travels to

Providence, Rhode Island, to race in the Dellenbaugh Team Race at Brown University. Lastweekend, the sailing team dominated their races, fnishingfrst at the Admiral Moore Open Team Race –– its frst interconference, team race regatta victory since 2017. The team earned second place in the Jen Harris Team Race and fnished the Harvard Team Race regattas in fourth place. Both the women’s and men’s tennis teams will compete against Harvard this weekend in their opening Ivy League Conference play. The Women’s team (48) will travel to Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and compete at 2 p.m.

The Men’s team (10-8) will host Harvard at home.

Men’s golf will face of against Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, following their seventh place fnish in a feld of 17 programs at the Battle at Rum Pointe event in Berlin, Maryland.

Sunday, April 2

Sailing will continue with day two of the Dellenbaugh Team Race hosted by Brown.

Softball will play Columbia University in their third and fnal game of the series at 12:30 p.m.

The baseball team (1-16) will host UPenn at Red Rolfe Field at Biondi Park in Hanover, New Hampshire, this weekend in hopes to break their conference losing streak (0-3). They

ZOORIEL TAN/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF were not as successful in their opening Ivy League conference series against Princeton University. Their games are at11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Monday, April 3 Baseball will play UPenn in their third and fnal game of the series at 12 p.m.

College,” Lawrence said. “But the more important thing — the more impactful thing for me — was just reconnecting, seeing again all of my teammates and so many people from years past that I hadn’t seen in a very long time.”

His younger brother, Leonard Lawrence, shared similar thoughts.

“It’s more important to us than it is to him,” Leonard Lawrence said. “Because for him this is great, and he really appreciates it, but his work is not done. He has a lot more work to do in his mind.”

Growing up, Lawrence was far from the Ivy League arena and a high-paying career in fnance.

The brother of eleven siblings, Lawrence grew up in the small city of Macon, Georgia. For his already poor parents, raising that many kids was certainly a challenge, Lawrence said.

“My dad stopped school in third grade — my mom stopped in fourth grade,” Lawrence said. “But they found, somehow, some way to cobble together enough money and enough will to put twelve kids through college.”

It was 1975, and Lawrence, having just graduated high school at the budding age of sixteen, picked up a call from the house phone. On the other end, Dartmouth basketball head coach Gary Walters answered.

“Coach called me, spoke to me, spoke to my mom,” Lawrence said. “. . . all I wanted to do was play basketball. I was fortunate because my parents were intelligent enough to make us have good grades.”

Dartmouth was the only application Lawrence flled out. Months later, Lawrence ofcially became a member of the College’s Class of 1980.

Standing at 6’4”, Lawrence went on to have a standout career as a Dartmouth forward, becoming one of only two Dartmouth men’s basketball players to be named Ivy League Player of the Year. He did that in the 1980-1981 season while averaging 21.8 points and 8.7 rebounds, simultaneously earning AP All-America honorable mention and team MVP honors.

Lawrence had also been named team MVP two seasons prior, as a junior, when he led the team in scoring and rebounding to fnd himself on the All-Ivy League First Team. Lawrence would miss the next season due to a broken foot, though he was selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the eighth round of the NBA Draft during the same season. Lawrence forwent that opportunity, though, returning in the 1980-1981 season due to injury eligibility rules and a desire to once more represent the Big Green.

After graduation, Lawrence would finally fulfill his dream of playing professional basketball — just not in the NBA.

Lawrence’s 20-year professional stint included four years in the now-former Continental Basketball Association and then 16 years in France.

“It was great because initially, as you can imagine, I did not go to Dartmouth to become a professional basketball player,”

Lawrence said. “I went there because it was a great school. But I grew, I got older and I got a lot better, and I had an opportunity.”

LJ Lawrence and his sister Alyssa Lawrence were born a year apart in France to Lawrence and his wife Arlene Lawrence.

For Alyssa Lawrence and LJ Lawrence, who moved to the States when they were fve and six, respectively, Lawrence was — and still is — a phenomenal father fgure.

“He was nothing but loving, and it was always fun to be around him and always fun to be with him,” LJ Lawrence said. “He was always stern with me … but always from a ‘I want things to be good, so I’m going to be hard on you because I know you can do better, and I know you can excel.’”

Upon returning to the United States, Lawrence quickly pivoted into a successful career in fnance, and he now serves as managing director of sales for Loop Capital.

If you happened to fall down in front of the Lawrence family, their frst instinct would be to help you.

It’s how Lawrence and Leonard Lawrence were raised, and how Lawrence then raised his own children.

“If there was someone that needed a meal, and you had lunch, share your lunch with them,” Leonard Lawrence said of the philosophy his parents instilled in him and Lawrence. “If you had someone who needed a buck or two, and you had fve, maybe you’d give them two — so that you didn’t give them all of the things, but you gave them just enough to help them along.”

So it makes perfect sense that aside from his fnance job, Lawrence remains actively involved with the Black Heart Foundation. Even in France, Lawrence took time out of his busy schedule to found “Les Enfants de la Terre” — translated, in English, to “Children of the Earth” — a charity that helps orphaned youths across France. He also formerly served on the Board of Directors of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship in New York which helps teach entrepreneurship to anyone ranging from middle schoolers to adults.This year, having fnished sixth in Ivy League play with an overall 10-18 record this season, The Big Green men’s basketball team could use a helping hand.

“Coach reached out, and I was able to speak to current players as well as some young alums, and I talked to them about my journey,” Lawrence said. “And then afterwards, [I] just try to be a mentor and try to be something that’s a service to them.

Still, Lawrence remains confident that the eforts of head coach David McLaughlin, who just wrapped up his seventh year at the helm of the team, are working.

In discussing Larry’s award, Leonard Lawrence said this: “While this is something he really appreciates and he understands the importance of, it’s not something that he belabors; he just simply says ‘Thank you, what’s next?’ Because there’s always somebody — something, some event — that he can infuence positively.”

For Lawrence, that something, for now, is Dartmouth basketball.