Jumbos tie Lord Jeffs at Homecoming

As is often the case in soccer, stats can belie a team's true ability. For the Jumbos, their 0-1-1 record against top-10 teams this year fails to show how close they have come to going 2-0. Tufts' 1-1 tie against Amherst on Homecoming left it winless for the ninth-straight time against the NESCAC foe. However, for the first time since coach Josh Shapiro has been at the helm, his team looked like a legitimate contender for the entire match.

Although the Jumbos have had experience against other highly-touted programs, their matchup against the Lord Jeffs was a unique challenge.

"Playing Amherst is different than playing other top-10 teams, just because of the physical, athletic nature of the big NESCAC contest," Shapiro said. "It's as much about playing your soccer as much as it is being able to be up for the battle and competing physically for 90 minutes, which is what Amherst makes you do."

There was no doubt that Amherst brought its aggressive style of play to Kraft Field, as the two teams combined for 43 fouls, with Amherst committing 27. The result of that chippy play was a low shot count for the Jumbos, who only got off 12 shots over 110 minutes of play. Despite Tufts leading the NESCAC in shots and goals, the team is not afraid to play a compact brand of soccer.

"When you play the best teams in the country, it's generally not going to be a wide-open, 25-25 shots, run up and down [kind of game]," Shapiro said. "We want to be a team that's compact, and handles our defending first. We want to keep it a little tighter and control what they do well, and I think we did that, [while] still creating enough chances."

In order to combat the physical presence of the Lord Jeffs, who often bypass their opposing team's midfield line and put pressure on the back four, Shapiro also made tactical adjustments, which were met with success.

"We adjusted, and changed formations to put a few players into deeper roles to help us protect against those long balls, and then [we] also left an extra player high to threaten them when we get a hold of [the ball]," Shapiro said. "It worked out successfully, and I credit our guys [because] it was the biggest tactical shift we've made all year."

Despite playing a less up-and-down game than they are used to, the Jumbos were still the first team to strike, with junior midfielder Jason Kayne finding the back of the net in the 25th minute for his fourth goal of the year.

"[The goal] came from a throw-in in Amherst's half," Kayne told the Daily in an email. "The ball found its way to [senior co-captain forward] Maxime Hoppenot who beat his defender and slotted the ball to [sophomore forward] Nathan Majumder. [Majumder] turned with the ball and passed it to me across the penalty box. I took a couple of touches with my left foot, shot the ball, and it ended up in the back of the net."

After the goal, Amherst ramped up its pressure even further, and finally in the 35th minute, broke through thanks to an inadvertent handball in the box that gave senior midfielder Milton Rico a penalty kick. Rico had no trouble converting, rocketing a shot to the top right of the goal, while sophomore goalie Scott Greenwood dove to the opposite side.

Greenwood was forced into action twice more before halftime and performed admirably in both cases. First, Greenwood tipped a header from 6'6" sophomore midfielder Andrew Orozco over the crossbar. Off the ensuing corner, Greenwood stopped another shot, this time from junior forward Greg Singer, whose shot from outside the 18 managed to find its way through the box.

In the second half, both teams continued to press for the go-ahead goal, and despite creating the opportunities, neither side was able to convert before the end of regulation.

"When you play a game at that level, there's not going to be 25 chances," Shapiro said. "There's going to be three, or four, or five, or six and you just have to be shrewd enough to take those chances."

The Jumbos faced an even bigger uphill battle when senior defender Peter Lee-Kramer picked up his second yellow card, forcing the Jumbos to take out one of their attacking midfielders in order to keep four players in the back.

Despite playing a man down, Tufts still managed to get off five shots compared to Amherst's one in the two overtime periods, but again, neither team could convert. The tie leaves Tufts second in the NESCAC behind Amherst heading into the second half of the season with increased confidence.

"We felt that we played really well," Kayne said.  "We just need to continue creating chances and keep our composure in the final third, and the goals will come. Our defense played amazing, and we just need to give the same effort that we had in this past game and I think we will get the result."

Although a victory on Homecoming would have provided a happy ending for the Jumbos on Saturday, the tie against the Lord Jeffs shows that the Jumbos are a legitimate contender this year and leaves them wanting more for a possible postseason matchup with the Lord Jeffs.

"I thought our kids played their hearts out," Shapiro said. "[But] what was also indicative of the group was that we weren't satisfied with that, and there wasn't a lot of giddy happiness after the game. Instead it was, 'wow, we played well, and we probably should have come out with a win.' That's where our expectation is -- it's that we can play with anybody and beat anybody if we're on our game."