Over the past eight seasons, the women's soccer team had played in three penalty-kick decisions and lost just one. In their last three games, the Jumbos have now lost two - both in elimination contests.
While Nov. 3's penalty-kick loss to Bowdoin in the NESCAC Tournament semifinals was a hard blow to a team that had its sights set on a championship appearance, Sunday's 2-2 tie and subsequent 4-3 penalty-kick loss to Hamilton in the second round of NCAAs was even more disappointing. The loss dropped the curtain on the 2007 season and the careers of the team's seven seniors, several of whom are among the most decorated players in the program's history.
After a convincing 3-1 first-round victory over Emmanuel Saturday, Sunday's decision was a frustrating end to a season that was starting to look a lot like 2005, in which Tufts advanced all the way to the Final Four.
"It's not satisfying to have it decided like that," senior co-captain Martha Furtek said. "It's unfair because it doesn't show what a great team we are and it doesn't show our team's potential.
"We didn't deserve to beat Bowdoin last week; they outplayed us and we forced it to penalty kicks," she continued. "Knowing we outplayed Hamilton and leaving with the loss is tough to swallow."
On paper, Tufts dominated the game, launching 33 shots to the Continentals' 17 and forcing 13 saves out of senior goalie Caitlin McGilley, compared to Tufts sophomore Kate Minnehan's three.
But when it counted most, Hamilton had the upper hand, as junior Caroline Miller ended the Jumbos' season with a shot past the diving Minnehan, after Tufts sophomore Whitney Hardy's shot found McGilley's hands.
"You're not really expected to save anything," Minnehan said. "You're just waiting for a mistake, if somebody shows their hips really early or hits the crossbar ... The shooters control the whole situation."
The shootout started and ended poorly for the Jumbos, as senior Joelle Emery's shot sailed wide to start the round and Miller's successful attempt sealed the PK win for the Continentals.
"We've been practicing a lot, but practicing PKs is so much different," sophomore Fanna Gamal said. "When you're kicking PKs in a real game, your biggest opponents are pressure and yourself. You can never recreate that game feeling and pressure."
Though Minnehan thwarted the Continentals' first attempt to keep score even, two Tufts misses were too much to overcome.
"PKs are really no way to decide the game," Gamal said. "We controlled the ball and had a lot more chances - we just were not able to convert and finish the ball. We played well and played really hard. It's no one's fault we - just got unlucky."
While luck was a major factor in the penalty shootout, the game's regulation periods were closely contested by two very skilled teams. Gamal and sophomore Cara Cadigan each scored for the Jumbos, but the Continentals were always one step ahead, keeping the game close down to the wire.
The game began with a wake-up call for Tufts, as the Continentals buried a goal just 32 seconds into the game, giving them a 1-0 advantage they held until the half.
"[The goal] gave them more confidence than they would have had, but we responded really well and we settled the ball down," Gamal said.
"Hamilton played a good game, but we played a better one," sophomore Ali Maxwell said. "The fact that we tied is a reflection that both teams played well. It's just unfortunate that it ended in penalty kicks."
In addition to cutting the Jumbos' season short, the loss prevented Tufts for the second straight week from a rematch with undefeated Williams, which beat Springfield 1-0 on Saturday to advance to the third round.
The Jumbos' lone victory in the NCAA Tournament came the previous afternoon, as they overcame an early deficit to cruise past Emmanuel for a first-round win at host Hamilton. As disappointing as Sunday's loss was, Saturday's first-round victory was just as promising, as Tufts cut Emmanuel's 16-game winning streak short and sent the 17-3-2 Saints back to Boston.
Freshman forward Amber Di Nucci put the Saints on top in the 36th minute with an unassisted goal. Emmanuel held the lead for just over a half-hour; in the 67th minute, the Jumbos got the equalizer off the foot of Cadigan, her 18th of the season. Freshman Sarah Nolet added the go-ahead score four minutes later, and Gamal followed four minutes after that to make it 3-1.
