As the 2013 season opens up for the Jumbos, head coach Mike Daly's squad begins their hunt for a fourth straight NESCAC lacrosse title. It may seem a farfetched goal, but Daly's men are up to the challenge.
The Jumbos last season fell 12-10 to Cortland State in a come-from-behind NCAA semifinal heartbreaker, but this spring, Tufts is determined to return to Championship Weekend. The last remaining members of the 2010 championship team now lead the Jumbos as seniors and hope to use their experience to get back to the peak of Div. III lacrosse.
"Of course we see this goal as doable," senior midfielder Brian Ruggiero said. "I think it speaks volumes to the type of program that Coach Daly has built here and the type of players he recruits that we now expect to be competing for that NESCAC title every year. That being said, the most important game is always the next one, so for right now we're focused on [Saturday's season opener against] Hamilton."
In addition to facing a rigorous schedule, Tufts will face the first two games of the season short-staffed while more than 20 members of the roster are temporarily benched in light of university-issued suspensions.
Tufts must also deal with the graduation of several All-American and All-NESCAC impact players and adjust to new faces that have joined the team.
"Coach Daly does a great job drilling our style of play at practice and in the film room to the point where it really becomes a habit," Ruggiero said. "We lose guys every year - that's the nature of playing a college sport - and we see this as just another opportunity, nothing more and nothing less."
On the Hunt
On the attacking end, the Jumbos have one primary role to fill. They will sorely miss co-captain Sean Kirwan (LA '12), who finished his chances nearly every time they arose and is perhaps the best crease finisher in recent Div. III history.
Kirwan, who has joined the Tufts lacrosse program as an assistant coach this season, became the Jumbos' all-time leader in goals last spring, passing the previous mark of 148 to finish his career with 150.
"Obviously, Sean was a tremendous player and team captain last year," junior midfielder Beau Wood said. "He has been a great addition to our coaching staff because of his wealth of knowledge on the offensive side of the field."
While Kirwan's absence will be noticed, Tufts proved itself by holding strong without him last year with an 8-2 record. Two very important starters - Wood and sophomore Cole Bailey - will improve the team's chances by returning this season.
Last year, the dynamic duo from the Severn School near Annapolis, Md. proved themselves a force to be reckoned with, delivering a one-two punch that many defenses found impossible to decipher.
Bailey, who was named the NESCAC Rookie of the Year, led the conference with 68 points, averaging more than three per game. He also topped the charts with 42 assists - the second-highest number of assists in the conference was 23 from Amherst quad-captain Evan Redwood. As the season progressed, Bailey emerged as a crucial set-up man, and showed a willingness to take big hits in order to get the job done.
Bailey's long-time teammate Wood came out of nowhere in 2012, displaying a fluid style of play and ability to rip shots from the wings and top of the circle. After appearing in just four games during his freshman season, Wood opened his sophomore campaign strong, scoring four goals and an assist in his first collegiate start, and kept the momentum going to finish second behind Bailey with 66 points and lead the league in goals.
The Jumbos also have a game-experienced candidate to step up as the third attackman in sophomore Chris Schoenhut. Schoenhut split time during the first half of the season last year, but emerged as a strong and intuitive player around the crease, demonstrating off-ball improvement as well.
Dodging bullets
The Jumbos return two of three offensive starters, but have suffered greater losses in the midfield, including last year's co-captain Kevin McCormick (E '12), a two-time All-American and All-NESCAC offensive midfielder who finished his senior campaign with 59 points.
"It's always tough when a team loses multiple players at one position, especially players like Kevin and George [Shafer]," midfielder Peter Bowers said. "But we feel that we have plenty of guys who can step up into more significant roles at the midfield."
Bowers, a junior, can help catalyze the Jumbos' revamped midfield unit. The midfielder had 34 points in 2012, is also a capable dodger, and might well begin to fill the role of his predecessor. However, Tufts is primarily focused on employing the talents of all of its midfielders.
"The losses at midfield present a great opportunity for younger players to see more playing time, which is exciting for everyone," Bowers added. "We are confident that our depth and talent at the midfield will allow us to fill the holes left by the senior class. As a team, we stress the importance of having leaders at every position - freshmen through seniors - so although it's great to have some experienced guys at the midfield, we expect everyone to be a leader."
X Marks the spot
At X, the Jumbos lost midfielder Nick Rhoads, whose breakout sophomore season helped the Jumbos to their first-ever national title and whose sensational senior campaign put the Jumbos in a position of strength again and again.
In 2012, Rhoads led the conference with 160 groundballs, averaging 7.62 per game, and posted the second-highest face-off percentage, winning 195 of 282 taken to reach a .591 mark. Although the graduate held the label of "face-off specialist" with disdain, one thing is certain: Rhoads brought something special to the circle.
"Rhoads was a large part of our success the past few years, but we are more than confident in the guys we have now taking face-offs," Bowers said. "They've all been doing a great job in practice and continue to improve every day. All of them are capable of taking the starting role and performing well."
Ruggiero, sophomores Joel Berdie, Ryan Le and Jeff Chang as well as junior Justin Chang all have face-off experience, and although it is unfair to expect that any will immediately fill Rhoads' shoes the Jumbos have a number of options from which to choose when taking the face-offs.
"We are very fortunate to be loaded with depth," sophomore midfielder Tim LaBeau said. "Guys were competing all fall at the face-off X and continue to push each other and improve in that crucial area of the game."
Added onus will be on Tufts' wing players and other midfielders to step up. While the Jumbos also lose Mark Findaro (LA '12), his counterpart Kane Delaney returns for his junior season after a sophomore season in which he accumulated 57 groundballs.
"Our coaches and players are great with analyzing film and strategy to be the best we possibly can," LaBeau said. "We are going to scrap for every ground ball on face-offs and are confident that this will be a strong facet of our game."
"With the exception of Findaro, our wing personnel hasn't changed much since last year," Bowers added. "All of the wing players have done well adapting to the absence of Rhoads and we are confident that they will continue to adapt to whoever is taking the face-offs."
A team in transition
Tufts generally spends more time playing defense than it does offense, and the Jumbos wouldn't have it any other way. For them, it is not time or number of possessions but rather the quality of those possessions that creates victories.
"One of the great things about playing Tufts lacrosse under Coach Daly is that we have the green light to be on the attack at all times during a game," LaBeau said. "Coach trusts us as great lacrosse players to look for every opportunity to attack the cage. We love to attack the defense during substitutions and will gladly score goals four-on-four versus six-on-six."
Thus, the fluidity of the Jumbos' transition game becomes an essential factor in their success - if they can force opponents into mistakes on their defensive end and push the ball up with numbers, their scoring chances are extremely high. And this season, the NCAA introduced quick-restart rules that could further facilitate the Jumbos' transition game.
Tufts has the workhorses willing to carry weight at midfield. Senior midfielder Dylan Haas and senior short-stick defensive midfielder Sam Diss, who both played football in the fall, are quick and hardworking. Diss and Haas saw time in all 21 games last season, and combined for 44 groundballs and 11 forced turnovers.
Senior Ben Saperstein and sophomore LaBeau round out Diss and Haas' play. Extremely athletic, LaBeau can keep up with most opponents on the fly, while Saperstein brings added experience to the field.
"We prepare for this style of play by practicing exactly how we play," LaBeau said. "Our drills simulate game situations with defensive-middies attacking the cage on offensive, using uneven numbers and a rapid style of play."
Due to the Jumbos' preferred pace, Rhoads' absence may prove less costly to the Jumbos than it would be to a team that prioritizes length of possession.
Anchors away
At the defensive end, Tufts is anchored by close defenders Matt Callahan - a transfer from Div. I Fairfield University - Sam Gardner and Heard. The trio has now played two full seasons together, and though Callahan is the only one in the pack without a championship ring, it goes without saying that the trio won't retire quietly.
Heard and Gardner bring their own strengths to the Jumbos' close defensive game and use their size to keep opposing attackmen on their heels. With two seasons of high-pressure postseason experience under its belt, the threesome has come far.
"Playing with those guys for the past three years has been great," Heard said. "We all have different skill sets and are able to combine those pretty effectively. The past couple years have allowed us to learn each other's tendencies to the level that now each of us knows how the others will react to a situation. It's been a ton of fun with them."
With a strong corps of goalkeepers to back them up in cage, the close defenders have some room to take risks and turn up the pressure. Each started every game for the Jumbos last season, combining for 104 groundballs and 46 forced turnovers.
Heard, Callahan and Gardner are more composed and communicative than they ever have been, which puts them in a position to be not only physically dominant but also smart and formidable as a unit. Sophomore long pole CemKalkavan, who measures in at about 6 feet 4 inches, also knows how to use his imposing size and physicality to his advantage, and showed promise during his freshman campaign.
Junior Nate Marchand stepped up last season as an early substitute, often playing a role in man-down situations, and sophomores C.J. Higgins, Jeff Chang and Garrett Read also gained experience last year to provide extra muscle and relief to a unit that is sure to be worked hard.
"Our defense seems deeper than ever and it gives the guys on the field added confidence," Heard said. "Not only are we being pushed harder at practice, but knowing that we have such capable guys to sub for us allows us to not worry about conserving energy at points in the game."
Stopped cold
Between the pipes, junior Patton Watkins, who took over the starting role from keeper Steve Foglietta (LA '12) midway through his freshman season, will get the nod.
During his sophomore season, Watkins finished fourth in the NESCAC with a goals allowed average of 7.96. His .575 save percentage was middle of the pack in the conference, but came in a Tufts system that plays more defense and allows more shots per game than nearly any other team. At the same time, Watkins averaged 10.40 saves per game and finished the season with 208 stops.
The option of using Foglietta will certainly be missed, particularly in the clutch. However, senior keeper Tyler Page, who is talented and capable of making extremely tough saves, will back Watkins between the pipes.
New arrivals
The Class of 2016 represents the second recruiting class attracted to Tufts following the team's national title. Several members of the incoming class are attackmen and midfielders, fitting well with the Jumbos' current resupply needs.
"Starting my freshman year, I have come to realize that our program is easy to get integrated into," Wood said. "We have incredible upperclass leadership and an amazing coaching staff that always gets the freshmen started off on the right foot. I feel like every year our freshman class gets more and more talented, and this year is definitely no different."
While the majority of these first-years will likely play second fiddle to the Jumbos' returning starters, several have emerged as strong candidates for receiving time. Given the strong performances of so many rookies last season, it would be an injustice to underestimate the impact first-years could have on this Jumbo squad.
"As the fall progressed into preseason, confidence was one of the biggest changes among the freshmen," first-year attackman Kyle Howard-Johnson said. "The transition from high school to college lacrosse was definitely an adjustment, and it took time for the freshmen to realize that they could not only compete, but also excel, with a team of this caliber. As the season goes on, I believe that many freshmen will contribute significantly to the team and its success."
The team's experienced players have also relayed Tufts' goals, both long-term and immediate, to the program's newest members.
"The seniors as well as the coaches have impressed upon us a sense of urgency, as well as the ultimate team goal of winning a national championship," Howard-Johnson said. "That's what we expected when we came here, and it has been impressed upon us ever since. The seniors have also been great about mentoring the freshmen on and off the field. With that said, our focus right now is on Tufts versus Hamilton this Saturday."
Save the date
Each year, Daly has worked to improve the Jumbos' strength of schedule, allowing Tufts to see one of the toughest regular seasons in all of Div. III. Heading into the season, three other NESCAC squads, No. 15 Bowdoin, No. 16 Trinity and No. 18 Connecticut College, join Tufts in the USILA rankings, while several other unranked NESCAC teams also will provide an immensely difficult challenge in conference schedule.
As if playing in a highly competitive conference wasn't enough, the Jumbos' out-of-conference schedule is highlighted by an annual spring break roadtrip, which allows Tufts to see action against several of the sport's top non-conference opponents.
Tufts will square off with No. 6 Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, N.J. before driving to the outskirts of Baltimore to face the formidable No. 2 Stevenson University Mustangs on March 19. Tufts rounds out its spring break with a home spat against No. 13 Western New England University.
Despite the long road ahead, the Jumbos remain grounded in the present - Tufts has mentally and physically prepared over the long off- and pre-season for Saturday's opener with Hamilton College, which the Jumbos will host on their own turf.
"As a player in our program, it's important to get better each day and we do so by approaching every day with that mentality," Saperstein said. "Yes, our goal is ultimately to win the national championship, but right now our focus is on our first game against Hamilton."
