Tufts field hockey cruised through last week, taking both away games against MIT and Hamilton 2–0 and 3–0. On Saturday, graduate student midfielder Andrea DelGiudice scored two goals in the second quarter. Junior forward Hannah Biccard extended the lead in the fourth quarter following a well-placed pass by senior forward Claire Gavin. With the win, the Jumbos improved their NESCAC record to 3–1. In the matchup against MIT, both teams were ranked within the top 15 of Division 3 teams. Sophomore midfielder Claire Casey and senior forward Kylie Rosenquest took charge offensively, with Casey scoring the first goal of her career in the final minutes of the second quarter. Rosenquest sealed the game in the fourth after a penalty was awarded to the Jumbos.
The weekday game against MIT stacked two highly-ranked teams against each other. Tufts was ranked seventh in the nation before the match, and MIT was their second top-20 opponent of the season.
“It’s always a gritty game every year,” Biccard said. “They’re smart with the ball, and they’re really strong.”
Regardless, the Jumbos imposed their will offensively, putting up an absolute hailstorm of 20 shots to Engineers’ six, resulting in two goals while not letting the Engineers put a single ball in the back of the net. The game was close going into the last quarter when Biccard forced a penalty stroke on the MIT defense, which occurs when the defense commits a foul inside the shooting circle that could have otherwise resulted in a goal. “I just happened to be fouled,” Biccard said. It gave Rosenquest an opportunity to take the penalty shot and score a crucial goal in an otherwise tight match.
Biccard noted how the Jumbos had to vary the types of presses they used against the Engineers, forcing the latter to adapt to their techniques. The flexible team coordination kept MIT on their toes and gave Tufts the right momentum heading into the weekend, where adapting would be even more crucial in the NESCAC matchup.
Biccard recalled going into Saturday’s game against Hamilton College with excitement. “Hamilton is a really great team, and we love playing them every year,” Biccard said. “It’s never scrappy, it’s always very professional.”
The result spoke for itself. On the field, each moment celebrated was built on the hours of preparation in practice. Biccard described the Jumbos ability to adapt to different offensive strategies and commended the team’s ability to see the open space and get the ball downfield, saying that, “When we didn’t have space to send a 45-degree ball into the circle, we would send it down the line,” she said.
With NESCAC play contributing toward a team’s placement in the postseason, a win was a high priority in the Jumbos’ minds. “We definitely knew we had to deliver on the field, and we needed a NESCAC win, after our loss to Williams,” Biccard said. And deliver they did.
DelGiudice scored early in the second quarter and not wanting to stop there, she sent another one past the goalie for her second goal of the game less than three minutes later. The grad student is already at eight goals on the season as of Sept. 21, including back-to-back hat tricks against NESCAC opponents Connecticut College and Colby.
Biccard sealed the lead to make it 3–0 in the fourth quarter with a deflection off a pass from Gavin. Owing to Hamilton’s strong forwards, she knew the importance of an insurance tally.
“Having a 3–0 lead is more of a comfortable place than a 2–0 lead, because if Hamilton scores one, it’s 2–1, and they could very easily tie up the game,” Biccard said.
The Jumbos outshot the Continentals a whopping 26 to 4, with eighteen shots on target from the Jumbos’ offensive onslaught. Tufts also secured 18 penalty corners to Hamilton’s three, creating a vast amount of scoring opportunities.
Going into this week, Tufts will face Babson College and Wesleyan College. The game against Babson carries a particular hype around it, as both teams are ranked inside the top 10 Division 3 teams in the nation, with Babson at fifth and Tufts close behind in seventh as of Sept. 17. The Jumbos have lost their last four games against the Beavers, with their most recent loss ending their 2023 season in the NCAA Division III tournament. When asked about what the difference will be this year, Biccard stressed home field advantage. “We’re so excited to play them on our home field,” she said. “If we play together, I think it will go well for us.”
The Jumbos got through the week with two more wins and didn’t let up a single goal. They’ll look to capitalize on that momentum going up against two formidable opponents this week. Tufts will host Babson on Tuesday, Sep. 24 and be at Wesleyan on Saturday, Sep. 28, aiming to add to their current win streak.
