Fives all around.
The Jumbos defeated the Plymouth State Panthers, the fourth-ranked team in New England, in a 5-0 rout on Wednesday night, following up on Saturday's 5-0 shutout against NESCAC foe Bowdoin, pushing the Jumbos' record to 5-4-1 on the year and extended their winning streak to five games, a streak that began with a similar 5-0 trouncing of Salve Regina on Sept. 26. And just for good measure, the Tufts win ended Plymouth State's own five-game winning streak in emphatic fashion with five goals in the game's first half.
"We can't ask for more than five goals, in one half especially," senior tri-captain Jon Glass said. "It's easy to come in after the streak we've been on and get a little overconfident and come out a little flat. I think, though, that we still have a chip on our shoulder after our slow start."
The match, played in a continuous downpour, was a physical contest, with 14 cumulative fouls and four yellow cards. The Jumbos excelled in the first half, scoring all five goals prior to the halftime whistle, but Plymouth dictated play in the second half as the weather played a role.
"There's an old clich?© in soccer about it being a game of two halves," Coach Ralph Ferrigno said. "The wind and rain was always going to make it a game of two halves. We had the wind and rain at our backs in the first half, and we absolutely tore them to shreds. In the second half, they had the wind and the rain, and they pushed up on us. We did a good job of keeping them out."
The Jumbos shuffled their starting 11 at the beginning of this match in part to compensate for injured tri-captain Greg O'Connell and usual starter sophomore Sam James, who is still recovering from injury as well and played a substitute role in the game. Freshman midfielder Ari Koburn and junior Alex Botwinick stepped into starting positions.
"Every time Alex Botwinick has come in the game, he's produced," Glass said. "He had a phenomenal game against Bowdoin. He was playing well, so coach decided he deserved to start."
Tufts had a fast start against Plymouth State and soon capitalized on the disorganized Panther defense when Jumbo sophomore midfielder Peter DeGregorio headed in a gorgeous long-ball from junior defender Alex Bedig over the hands of Panther sophomore goalkeeper Tyler Shute for a 1-0 lead.
Just 34 seconds later, junior forward Dan Jozwiak further deflated the Plymouth team with a header to the upper 90. Jozwiak and Botwinick worked a beautiful give-and-go play on the left-hand side, leading to a Botwinick cross for Jozwiak's fifth goal of the season.
Tufts has discovered a newfound productivity in front of the net and has scored 20 goals in its last five games, compared to a dismal six goals netted in the team's season-opening five winless matches.
"Confidence certainly is a key factor in finishing," Ferrigno said. "Early in the season when things weren't falling our way, I knew we had players who could score goals. You're just waiting for something to click or build some confidence to get involved in the process [of scoring]. As it's panning out right now, we have both forwards and midfielders scoring goals. So far, we haven't looked back."
Tufts senior forward Mattia Chason added another to the Tufts tally at the 30:51 mark with a header off of senior Bob Kastoff's corner kick, the first of three goals that would come in the next 10 minutes.
James continued the scoring trend seven minutes later and slid the ball past Shute off an assist from DeGregorio for 4-0 lead. Chason, the team's leading scorer with seven goals, capped off the Jumbos' scoring run at the 39:29 minute mark, converting on a through ball from freshman midfielder Bear Duker. Tufts finished the half with 13 shots compared to Plymouth's three and eight corner kicks to the Panthers' two, indicating the Jumbos' complete dominance of the first 45 minutes.
The second half was an entirely different story. Plymouth controlled play and topped the statistics, logging 13 shots to the Jumbos' six and five corner kicks to Tufts' three.
"We should have definitely played just as hard [in the second half], but it was a non-conference game, and we were just trying to keep the shutout and not trying to get hurt," Glass said. "We weren't trying to run up the scoreboard."
Although the Panthers menaced several times, few of their shots came close to net, and freshman goalkeeper Pat Tonelli needed to make only three saves in the game. Earning its fourth shutout in five consecutive victories, the Tufts defense continuously frustrated the Plymouth attack, leading to three yellow cards against Panther players in the second half.
Senior Aaron Nass, who had returned after being sidelined last season with a blood clot in his lung, has anchored the Jumbo defense this season.
"The reason we were struggling so badly in our first four games is because he wasn't there," Glass said. "The moment he was a starter, we started winning. He's one of the most underrated people in the league, but we know how important he is to the team."
The Jumbos are in action on the road tomorrow against NESCAC opponent Trinity and look to improve upon their current 2-3-1 conference record.
