Heading into this past weekend, the women's basketball team understood the crucial nature of its games against Middlebury and Williams. At the minimum, a split was needed.
And that's exactly what the Jumbos got, staying alive in the NESCAC after downing Williams 75-64 on Friday night and giving up a ten-point lead in a 69-67 loss to Middlebury the following afternoon. Unfortunately for the Jumbos, they were just one-three pointer away from sending the latter game into overtime.
Down 67-61 in the closing seconds on Saturday, the Jumbos had a brief chance to finish the weekend undefeated. Sophomore guard Hillary Dunn's three-pointer at the 0:25 mark brought Tufts within three, and the Jumbos' press then forced the Panthers to lose the ball out of bounds. The home crowd on its feet and 17 seconds remaining in the game, the ball wound up in the hands of Katie Kehrberger, whose three-pointer with six seconds on the clock hit the back of the rim.
The Panther rebound sealed the victory, though junior Jayme Busnengo tossed in a three pointer with :01 left to make the final score 69-67.
The Jumbos are still very much alive in the playoff picture, however, and can clinch a spot in the NESCAC Tournament by winning both of their games next weekend.
Throughout the first half and much of the second on Saturday, things had been looking up for Tufts. Riding high following the win over Williams, the team came out strong against Middlebury.
Sophomore Emily Goodman was all over the court from the opening tip, scoring 13 first-half point on her way to a game-high 23, grabbing five rebounds, and diving on the Cousens floor for several loose balls.
With 14:20 left, Goodman hauled in a long rebound and sprinted down the court on the break to finish on a pass from junior Katie Kehrberger. Goodman added a free throw to complete the old-fashioned three-point play. Busnengo completed a short jumper less than a minute later, and the Jumbos had their biggest lead of the half at 14-8.
But as they would all afternoon, the Panthers came right back, even briefly taking the lead at the ten-minute mark. A steal by senior point guard Shira Fishman a few minutes later led to a transition bucket by freshman Maritsa Christoudias. On the next possession, fellow freshman Kate Gluckman came flying out of nowhere to grab her own rebound and stake Tufts to a 27-24 lead with 5:45 to play.
From there, Middlebury went on a short six-point run to take a three-point lead of its own, later heading into halftime with a 32-31 advantage.
The one-point lead lasted only one possession into the second half. Kehrberger hit a short jumper, followed by a three-pointer, Tufts' first of the game, and then proceeded to hit Goodman with a nice feed as Tufts ripped off nine unanswered points in the first two minutes of the second half. Freshman Erin Buckley, who tied her career high with eight points in the game, hit a turnaround jumper with 13:56 left to push the Jumbos' lead to 46-36.
Unfortunately for Tufts, the Panthers answered right back. Junior captain Megan McCosker (who was sent to the sidelines with an ankle injury in the first half) hit two consecutive three pointers to pull Middlebury back within four at the 8:55 mark.
Buckley hit a lay-up and the ensuing free throw to push the now not-so-jumbo lead to six, but Middlebury went on another run, highlighted by sophomore Kristin Hanley's three-point basket from the right side to give Middlebury the lead. Six Hanley points later - a baseline drive and four free throws - the Jumbos were in dire straits, down 67-61 with 0:41 to play. Dunn then connected on a three, and the game came down to Kehrberger's last-second attempt.
"I don't think Middlebury did anything outstanding," Goodman said afterwards. "They just hit it when it counted."
"It's disappointing," coach Janice Savitz said. "Middlebury hit some big shots. They hit some threes that they usually wouldn't even take."
The Jumbos faced their usual rebounding deficit, getting beaten 43-36 on the boards, and most critically losing the battle of offensive rebounds 16-7.
Against Williams there was no such letdown, as Tufts emerged victorious 75-64, though the game was close most of the way. Four straight points by Busnengo gave Tufts a 31-28 lead at the half, and that lead would hold up the rest of the way as the Jumbos shot a blistering 58.6 percent from the field in the second half.
Goodman, who led the way with 23 points and ten rebounds, scored seven of the Jumbos' first nine points in the second half as Tufts pushed its advantage to seven, just over three minutes into the half. From there, the Jumbos would cruise until the 7:10 mark, getting two three pointers from Dunn and six points from Kehrberger.
Williams managed to crawl back within striking distance when sophomore Kate Stumpo connected on a three-point play and a three-point jumper on consecutive possessions, cutting the Tufts lead to seven. Eph freshman Bridget McDonough then hit a free throw to cut the lead to six at 59-53.
The Jumbos did not fold, however, and Christoudias hit two consecutive jumpers to effectively put the game out of reach.
Tufts drew one of its best home crowds of the year for the Williams game, including a number of particularly boisterous individuals.
"It makes such a difference when we hear a burst of cheering," Goodman said. "It makes us play harder."
The Jumbos also outrebounded the undersized Ephs, 42-34.
While the loss to Middlebury was disappointing, the overall effect of this weekend's games on Tufts' NESCAC standing was of a positive nature. The Wesleyan Cardinal lost both of its games over the weekend and is currently tied for fifth with Tufts and Trinity College - if Tufts wins its games over Wesleyan and Conn. College next weekend, a tournament berth is guaranteed.
"If we can just make it to the tournament, anything could happen," assistant coach Martha Whiting said.
