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The Tufts Daily
Where you read it first | Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Tufts holds on for win, moves on to NESCAC semifinals

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Junior midfielder Rachel Terveer evades a Hamilton player in a 3-2 victory on October 25, 2014.

After taking down Amherst in the quarterfinals Saturday, Tufts is once again set to enter NESCAC semifinal action this weekend in a high-powered matchup against Bowdoin that will feature two of the conference’s perennial leaders.

Taking down the defending Div. III National Champions, however, would likely require the best performance of the season for the Jumbos, which they were not able to put forth in their matchup against the Bowdoin Polar Bears last week.

In the final game of the regular season on Wednesday, Tufts couldn’t get much going against Bowdoin, losing the road game 4-0. Although disappointing for the team, the loss did not affect the Jumbos' position in the NESCAC standings. 

But Tufts was able to overcome both the fresh loss to Bowdoin and a loss to Amherst earlier in the season to come out on top in a close 1-0 battle with the No. 4 seed, advancing to the next round of the tournament.  

“We knew our game against Amherst was a do-or-die situation,” senior co-captain Brittany Norfleet said. “We were focused in practice on making that game our best game yet this season, and I think we really came together.”

Coming off of a tough October in which they were constantly under fire, the Jumbos' defense held strong against the Lord Jeffs' attack. For its part, Amherst stifled Tufts' offense and kept them from getting a shot off until almost 11 minutes in.

Tufts senior goalkeeper Bri Keenan’s brilliant save in the 30th minute on a backhanded shot from Amherst midfielder Mary Margaret Stoll to keep the game scoreless epitomized the first half -- a few close scoring chances rebuked by tough defense from both squads.

“Our defense played so tough,” sophomore forward Annie Artz said. “Our coaches always say that defense is a mentality -- playing with an attitude that nothing is getting by you -- and that’s exactly what our defense did.”

The Lord Jeffs failed to match the Jumbos’ intensity in the second half, though. Tufts coach Tina McDavitt Mattera’s side came out shooting after the break and earned three penalty corners and took three shots in the first 11 minutes of the period. On the fourth penalty corner and ensuing shot, they hit the mark.

Junior defender Alexandra Jamison took the corner late in the 47th minute and sent it into the circle where junior midfielder Dakota Sikes-Keilp, who had been firing off shots all day, got her stick on the ball and put it past the Amherst keeper.

Despite being down just one goal, the Lord Jeffs were mentally beaten and failed to get much of anything going in the remaining 23 minutes. The Jumbos' defense held on to deliver the team’s first shutout since Oct. 2.

“Everyone was getting back on defense and doing their part,” Norfleet said. “From the forwards all the way back to the low defenders. We stayed patient and held our system very well. We were also just determined to keep the ball as far away from our defensive circle as possible and to clear the ball out strong.”

The win erased the memory of the loss that the Jumbos suffered only a few days prior. A dominant Bowdoin team easily handled Tufts in a game that fortunately had no bearing on the standings.

Bowdoin, in true defending NCAA Champion form, came out strong and pounded Tufts early.Junior forward Rachel Kennedy, the NESCAC’s leading scorer with 27 goals on the season, put her team up early in the 11th minute with a score off of a penalty corner, and the hosts never looked back.

As Kennedy went on to add two more first half goals to pick up her fourth hat trick in the last seven games, the Jumbos offense struggled to get much going. After another tally early in the second half made it 4-0, the Polar Bears eased up and held on for the win to secure the top seed in the conference going into the tournament.

Now, the Jumbos have a chance for some payback. As the highest remaining seed, they will be heading up to Maine once again, but the stakes are a little higher for this Saturday’s competition.

A Tufts upset would likely give them the confidence and momentum to take down whoever they would play in the championship game as well, while a Bowdoin victory could mean another step toward the program’s seventh NESCAC title in the last 10 years.

“Staying composed and spreading the field will be key,” said Artz. “We need to play as a unit, connect on quick passes, convert on our scoring opportunities and just play the way we know we can.”

The last and only Tufts NESCAC title came in 2009, and the team has gotten to this same semifinal stage three out of the last four years but fallen short of that elusive championship game every time.

“The key to beating Bowdoin this weekend will be passion and gut,” said Norfleet. “It's going to come down to who wants it more. “