It is the most exciting time of year for hockey fans: the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The two-monthlong playoffs kicked off Saturday night with game one of the Carolina Hurricanes vs. the New York Islanders and the Boston Bruins vs. the Toronto Maple Leafs series, which was just the beginning of the thrill of playoff hockey which we will see in the weeks and months to come.
Winning is hard. Winning consistently is even harder. And yet, for the graduating seniors and fifth-years of the Jumbos softball team, winning has come naturally. Across their entire collegiate careers, the graduating class has compiled a record of 121–30, with a 45–5 NESCAC mark. So, on senior weekend, the best way to honor the program’s veterans was by winning, and that is exactly what occurred.
It was a big weekend for NESCAC women’s lacrosse with a game between the top two teams in the conference. The Tufts women’s lacrosse team, then ranked No. 4, played No. 1 Middlebury at home on Saturday. Though the Jumbos lost 14–13, the tight game showed just how competitive they will be for NESCAC and NCAA championships. Beyond the chance to compete against the best-ranked team in the division, this was an especially exciting game for the Jumbos because it was Senior Day.
Two of baseball’s best pitchers — the Braves’ Spencer Strider and the Guardians’ Shane Bieber —will miss the rest of 2024 with season-ending injuries to their ulnar collateral ligaments. It’s a reminder that pitching injuries are on the rise across baseball, and not just for the pros.
Tufts baseball took on a triple header at home against the Bates College Bobcats this past weekend, playing two games at midday on April 6 and one at midday on April 7.
U.S. National Team member Reese Esponda just left her gym in Montana and moved to World Champions Centre in Spring, Texas. With her move, that makes 13 women on the national team who train in Texas, out of a total of 27 team members. Three of those team members are in college, and that doesn’t count gymnasts like Addison Fatta, who is trained by her parents in her hometown.
Tufts softball’s weekend road trip started off at the Amherst Softball Field on April 6. Despite the days of rain leading up to the game, the weather stayed relatively calm on Saturday, with a chilly overcast replacing the consistent downpour. The Jumbos entered the doubleheader leading the NESCAC with an overall record of 14–4, facing a sixth-place, 4–9 overall Amherst Mammoths team. Already this deep into the season, the Jumbos knew all there was to know about the Mammoths and were prepared to handle the game like the better team.
As starting shortstop for the last three years, senior Ozzie Fleischer has consistently been both a dynamic and an impactful player on the Jumbos baseball squad. Fleischer hails from Texas and attended Fort Worth Country Day High School. At Tufts, he is majoring in political science and will be attending the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy next year. Baseball fans might get the chance to see him on the field as shortstop for another season thanks to his extra year of eligibility due to COVID-19.
There it is, folks. The 2023–24 NCAA men’s basketball season is officially over. Just like every year, we had incredibly talented teams, captivating storylines and an abundance of exhilarating games. But still, this year looked very different.
Sports teams may seem like an intimidating place to start for students looking to get involved on campus. However, for students who are looking to stay active, make friends and find a balance between extracurriculars and academics, club sports may be just the place.
This week’s focus is once again not a specific award; we’ll go into the most improved teams from this season. These are the teams that have shown the most growth from last season to this season.
The No. 4 Tufts women’s lacrosse team broke their undefeated streak this season with a 15–17 loss to No. 7 Wesleyan University on Saturday. The Jumbos and the Cardinals held the score even throughout the first half, with no team ever gaining more than a two-goal advantage. In the third quarter, Tufts pulled away, leading 15–11 going into the fourth quarter. But during the fourth quarter, Wesleyan was able to make up their four-goal deficit, coming back to beat Tufts by two.
As 17-year-old Endrick danced under the picturesque Wembley floodlights, the world was given a taste of Brazil’s post-Neymar era. It was an exhibition of finesse and skill as the youngster broke the deadlock against a Bellingham-inspired England side. A historic friendly in a historic venue. For much of that weekend, Brazil’s script wrote itself with the help of its young stars until it was once again deeply scarred by football’s age-old, sickening reality of racism.
In honor of hot starts to the 2024 season by the two greatest position players of this generation, I wanted to show a little love to Mike Trout and Mookie Betts, who, in my opinion, have already secured their spots in Cooperstown despite being just 32 and 31, respectively. With the Angels never having won a playoff game in Trout’s career and Betts now having to play second fiddle to Shohei Ohtani at Dodger Stadium, these two living legends can get overlooked. Rather than make such a mistake, I’m looking at their substantial career accomplishments and evaluating their legacies accordingly.
After eight years of hiatus, the Tufts Criterium in the Boston Beanpot returns to campus on April 13. This cycling race will take place largely on the residential quad, where cyclists will participate in a variety of races throughout the day.
Tufts men’s rowing opened its spring sprint season on Saturday with races against Harvard men’s lightweights and Riverside Boat Club. Coming off a No. 1 ranking in the preseason Division III poll, the pressure was on for the Jumbos to prove, against a notoriously quick Crimson lightweight team, that their Head of the Charles sweep last fall was not just a fluke.
This past weekend, the Tufts baseball team traveled to Brunswick, Maine to take on Bowdoin College for the first NESCAC matchup of the season. After a 6–1 win against Thomas College, Bowdoin entered the doubleheader with a 10–4 record, looking to extend their five-game win streak.
Every spring has that one weekend. The first weekend where you can go outside without a jacket and bask in the sunlight. The vibes, as the kids say, are immaculate. The dreariness of winter is finally washed away. For the Tufts softball team, that weekend was this weekend.
The No. 3 Tufts women’s lacrosse team has been on a seemingly unstoppable nine game winning streak, with their most recent win at No. 9 Colby College by a score of 15–6. With strong scoring as well as an impressive defensive showing, the Jumbos demonstrated their depth and wide range of skills.
This week’s focus, although not a specific award, is on the most surprising teams from this season. These are the teams that most exceeded my expectations and are in a much better position than most thought that they would be in.
