After defeating Amherst over the weekend for its first victory of the season, the field hockey team fell to visiting Wellesley 1-0 yesterday. The defeat dropped the Jumbos' record to 1-2 but had no affect on NESCAC standings.
Tufts came out aggressively in the beginning of the first half, playing primarily offense and keeping Wellesley on their heels.
The team "played an excellent first twenty-five minutes, in which we controlled the tempo of the game," coach Carol Rappoli said.
Two Tufts shots proved fruitless early on along with three unsuccessful penalty corners. As the half progressed, the Jumbos continued to attack the Wellesley goal. Sophomore Dana Panzer contributed with physical play and speed up the field.
"The energy was great going in," Panzer said.
Despite the Jumbos' domination for the majority of the half, Wellesley managed to penetrate the defense and sneak the ball into the back of the goal in the last five minutes of the half. Wellesley senior Marret Arfsten scored the lone goal of the competition on an assist from senior Elizabeth Masiello in heavy traffic just before the referee sounded the half-time whistle.
Negative energy from the last minute goal followed the Jumbos into the second half.
"Once the goal was scored, we were completely frazzled," Rappoli said.
Tufts seemed to be stuck in a defensive bog for the remainder of the match, playing deep in its own zone with few offensive opportunities. Wellesley had eight-second-half penalty corners in comparison to the Jumbos' two. Opposing attackers had many opportunities to score, but failed to capitalize.
Junior goalkeeper Julie Jackson had an excellent second half, as she recorded seven saves.
Tufts' frustration was obvious and resulted in a green card issued by the referee, warning players to keep themselves under control. Wellesley stepped up the intensity and generated well-orchestrated attacks as Tufts continued to struggle in clearing the ball.
The Jumbos showed did not give up however, as they made a last ditch effort in the final minutes to score the tying goal. An unsuccessful break away by senior attacker Dana Chivvis was thwarted by the Wellesley defense and a late penalty corner was unsuccessful as well. The offense frantically continued to fight in the Wellesley zone but to no avail as time ran out.
"We could have connected better on the field, but everyone played their hearts out," Panzer said.
Despite the defeat, the team remains hopeful for the rest of the season.
"It is only our third game, there is nothing we feel in trouble about" just yet Rappoli said.
The team will have two days to practice for this weekend's league game versus Connecticut College. It aspires to boost its overall record back up to .500 and improve its NESCAC record to 2-0. Coach Rappoli will focus on defensive tactics and free hits in practice to improve upon Wednesday's second half performance.
"We have a great team and will do great things this season, (but) this game was a good indicator of what we need to work on (in practice)," Panzer said
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