The Men's soccer team kept the fire burning from its blazing start for the full 90 minutes against Amherst on Saturday, scorching its NESCAC rival with a 2-0 shut-out on Kraft Field.
"It was big for us to play the whole game," senior tri-captain Todd Gilbert said. "We've been known to let down, but we really concentrated on staying focused for all 90 minutes this time around."
The win snapped a three-game home losing streak that began when M.I.T. orchestrated a come-from-behind victory in the last ten minutes of play on Sept. 14. Both of the following two losses, against Middlebury and Salve Regina, came at the hands of late game goals as well. This time, however, the Jumbos held on as time wound down, tallying a decisive victory that moved their record to 2-3 overall and 2-1 in the NESCAC.
"It's always nice to win," coach Ralph Ferrigno said. "We deserved the victory today. We created more chances and were quicker to the ball."
As in most of its games this season, Tufts dominated its opponent early, coming out strong in the first half. But this time, the Jumbos were able to score an early goal against a sluggish Amherst squad just six minutes into the match.
Sophomore midfielder Bob Kastoff drove the ball into the left corner, arching a long cross past the far post to Gilbert. The senior aimed a header towards the net, but found junior striker Mattia Chason's head instead. Chason redirected the ball past sprawling Amherst keeper Greg Lockwood to put Tufts ahead early 1-0.
"To get that first goal definitely got us on track and set the tone for the game," sophomore forward Dan Jozwiak said. "We just established ourselves early."
The Jumbos continued to create quality opportunities while minimizing the Amherst attack for the duration of the first half. The defense maintained its shape, effectively locking the Lord Jeffs out of the goal box for the majority of the opening period. The Jumbos missed several close shots from Kastoff, junior striker Ben Castellot and Jozwiak, but held on to their 1-0 lead going into halftime.
Tufts again came out strong in the early minutes of the second half, but faced a revamped Lord Jeff offense focused on winning loose balls. Despite the Amherst pressure, Tufts still continued to generate scoring opportunities as both teams sprinted up and down the field, trading possession of the ball.
Freshman goalie Brian Dulmovits, who recorded the second shutout of his brief career with the win, shone in the second half, aggressively challenging the Amherst attack and showcasing his range and flexibility with several difficult saves. With 23 minutes remaining in the game, Dulmovits stole a goal from Jeffs senior Christian Alexander, fully extending to block a well-placed shot. The freshman then kept his concentration and pounced on the rebound to stifle what would prove to be Amherst's best chance of the day.
"Brian had a rough day [against Salve Regina], and when you have a day like that, as a coach I worried that he might hang his head," Ferrigno said. "But he didn't do that. He bounced back and got the clean sheet. That will be good for his confidence."
Tufts added its second and final goal of the contest in the 74th minute. Senior tri-captain Mike Guigli sent a through ball to Chason, who broke past the Amherst defense, found a wide open field in front of him, and placed the ball with a driving shot on the ground to the right side of the net. Making the goal that much sweeter was the fact that it ceme just minutes after Jozwiak put the ball in the net only to have it disallowed by a controversial offsides call.
"I guess I was offsides by about a foot; I thought I was on," Jozwiak said of the call. "We [basically] won the game when Mattia scored. The whole second half was a battle."
Ferrigno credited Jozwiak's physical play in the front as a key to the Jumbos' offensive success.
"[Jozwiak] just caused them so many problems with his physical presence," Ferrigno said. "That created a lot for the other players. He was immense [on Saturday]."
Tufts was able to hold Amherst off in the remaining minutes of the match to secure the 2-0 victory. The Jeffs continued to pressure the defense, but were thwarted time and again by a Tufts team obviously juiced up. Mental focus to hold strong in the final minutes will help this young team as it continues through its schedule with a non-league match against Rhode Island College tomorrow.
"This was a big game for us," Gilbert said. "But it means nothing if we can't keep the momentum going."
