Tufts field hockey played in its first away doubleheader of the season this weekend, in which the team traveled to both Trinity and Middlebury College. The No. 4 ranked Jumbos faced the No. 5 ranked Bantams on Saturday and the No. 1 ranked Panthers on Sunday. Both the Bantams and Panthers are NESCAC opponents, making these two games highly anticipated conference matchups.
After splitting the doubleheader — beating Trinity 4–0 on Saturday and losing 2–1 in overtime to Middlebury on Sunday — Tufts stands at 7–2 on the season and 5–1 in conference play.
The Middlebury Panthers entered the Sunday game versus the Jumbos at a perfect 11–0 on the season and 6–0 in NESCAC play. The Jumbos and Panthers fought tooth and nail, with the score remaining 0–0 for 46 minutes until the Panthers scored on a corner in the fourth quarter. Tufts senior forward Claire Foley netted one for the Jumbos to tie the game with three minutes left in the quarter.
The score remained 1–1 at the end of regulation, sending the game into overtime. Two minutes into the overtime period, Middlebury senior midfielder Erin Nicholas scored the game-winner for the Panthers. As overtime periods are sudden victory, the game ended in a 2–1 loss for the Jumbos. The Panthers outshot the Jumbos 8–4 and had a 6–4 advantage in corners.
On Saturday, Trinity entered the match 8–1 on the season and 4–1 in NESCAC play, with its only loss of the season thus far to Wesleyan University, which ended in a double-overtime loss 3–2. The Jumbos showed up at Trinity and dominated. Sophomore forward Rachel Scrivanich kicked off the scoring 14 minutes into the game for the Jumbos with her first collegiate goal. Senior defender Melissa Manzello added two goals in the second half, along with a goal from senior forward Gillian Roeca.
Junior goalkeeper Sam Gibby had an impressive five saves for the match and kept the Bantams scoreless, despite their 11–9 advantage in corners. The match resulted in an impressive 4–0 victory for the Jumbos.
"Everyone brought great energy and intensity from start to finish all weekend," graduate student midfielder and co-captain Beth Krikorian said. "We fought so hard and gave both games our all — we played with a ton of heart. We’re a really strong team and have a lot to look forward to the rest of this season."
The Jumbos return to Tufts to play non-conference foe Wellesley at home on Wednesday and will face NESCAC opponent Amherst at home on Saturday.
