Coach Martha Whiting refused to let her team ease into its 2007 schedule.
On the second weekend of the season, the squad had a hefty task ahead: back-to-back games against 2006's defending NESCAC champion and a totally unfamiliar team from Kenosha, Wis.
As time expired in yesterday's matinee against Carthage College, the Jumbos had swept the weekend's games to improve their record to 3-1. Tufts easily handled Carthage 2-0 yesterday after a dramatic come-from-behind 2-1 double-overtime victory against Middlebury on Saturday.
Although Saturday's matchup was clearly the highlight of the weekend, the team showed its resilience yesterday, refusing to take the unranked Carthage squad for granted.
"I knew that mentally they would be up for it, but physically, I was concerned people would be tired because of the amount of time some of them played [Saturday]," Whiting said. "Carthage was fresh and they had a lot of numbers and we were tired, but I think the personality of our team is showing. We have a really competitive instinct, so I think that's what got us through."
Tufts also had its early-season secret weapon in sophomore Cara Cadigan, who has scored four of the team's six goals this season, including the game-winner against the Panthers and a pair against the Lady Reds yesterday.
Coming back from a torn ACL sustained during the spring of her senior year in high school, Cadigan has more than impressed her teammates and coach. On a team of seven seniors, Cadigan has certainly made a place for herself on offense.
"She was a highly-touted recruit as a freshman and we've been playing with her all spring, so we've been able to see what she brings to the table," senior Lauren Fedore said. "Obviously we couldn't expect her to play as well as she's been playing, but we're absolutely ecstatic. She is ridiculously quick and knows how to put herself in the right place, and she's obviously a fantastic asset."
In addition to Cadigan, the rest of the offense churned out a couple of notable performances over the weekend, a refreshing turnaround for the Jumbos after being shut out by the nationally-ranked No. 19 Wheaton Lyons last Tuesday.
On Saturday, it took most of the game for the offense to make its mark against the No. 8 Panthers. But once freshman Sarah Nolet knocked in her first collegiate goal with six minutes remaining in regulation, the tables turned for the Jumbos. Cadigan netted her goal on a feed from sophomore Ali Maxwell in the 107th minute to cap off the victory.
"We really stepped up our offense," Fedore said. "We are always able to maintain possession very well, but we've been trying to put more of an emphasis on looking to shoot, looking to the goal more often and getting good quality shots off. So I think putting two in [Saturday] and two in [yesterday] was huge."
"As both teams got tired, we really, in the end, wanted it a little more," Whiting said. "We were consistent and as the game progressed, we got even better and switched a few key players around. Things really worked out in regard to that, and in the end, we just really stepped it up."
Yesterday's game was not quite as back-and-forth, as Tufts controlled the ball and the pace of the game for a majority of regulation. The Jumbos launched 21 shots compared to the Lady Reds' five.
"We transitioned well into attack, and their defense wasn't as good at transitioning back," sophomore Maya Shoham said. "But they definitely applied pressure. We found the corners and the seams through their defense and played through to our outside forwards."
Such fluidity on both ends of the field was a promising sign for a Jumbo team that has been adjusting to a new formation this season. The team had looked a little shaky early on in the first three games, but it had no problem settling down yesterday, scoring its first opening-half goal of the season.
"That sort of takes a little bit of the edge off," Whiting said. "You know you have to work just as hard after you've scored five goals as when you haven't scored any goals, but it gives you a collective sigh of relief and gives you confidence that you know you can score."
Certainly the team emerged from the weekend and the first four games of the season with more confidence than last year. In 2006, the squad didn't win until the fifth game of the season. This time around, Tufts looks a lot more like the team that won 10 of its first 11 games of the 2005 campaign.
The Jumbos hope that trend will continue next weekend when they play Amherst, a team they tied 2-2 last season, but beat 3-1 the previous year. After the win against Middlebury, and a 2-0 shutout of Colby in the first game of the season, the team is looking to make it three straight against NESCAC opponents.
"Obviously conference games are really important to us," Whiting said. "You shoot for the NESCAC Tournament and the NESCAC championship because that's what propels you to the NCAA Tournament. So for us to come out and beat [Middlebury] was really important because when you lose a game early, as a player, it's hard not to doubt yourself."
