Women's Lacrosse | Top seed will belong to Jumbos with victory over Bowdoin

    The women's lacrosse team has a chance at history squarely in its control.
    Heading into tonight's regular-season finale with Bowdoin, the nationally ranked No. 7 Jumbos have the opportunity to do something that no other Tufts squad has ever done: lock up the No. 1 seed in the NESCAC and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. A matchup with the 8-6 overall, 3-5 NESCAC Polar Bears is all that stands in the way.
    Tied atop the conference standings with Colby, the Jumbos have posted a 12-1 (7-1 NESCAC) mark this season, going blow for blow with the defending NESCAC champion Mules all season long. But a decisive 13-9 win over Colby on March 14 back in the second week of the season gives the Jumbos the head-to-head edge now, and regardless of Colby's outcome with Bates tonight, a win over the Polar Bears would guarantee the Jumbos first place.
    "We're not concerned with stats or records," sophomore midfielder Amanda Roberts said. "We're just focusing on how we're playing now."
    "We're treating it like any other game — it's no different," sophomore goaltender Sara Bloom added.
    Riding an eight-game winning streak, Tufts certainly has momentum on its side as it takes on the eighth-place Polar Bears. The Jumbos' most recent triumph, a 16-13 road decision over Conn. College Sunday, was not nearly as narrow as the final tally implies. Tufts carried a 16-9 lead into the closing minutes of the contest before the Camels rallied with four unanswered goals in under three minutes to shrink the gap.
    Despite the waning-minutes scare, the Jumbos hung on for the win and netted some valuable experience from the game. Registering 34 shots, the Jumbo offense was firing on all cylinders, a theme it hopes to continue through tonight's finale.
    "Shot selection is going to be huge," Roberts said. "It's something that [coach Carol Rappoli] has stressed all year. The attack has gotten better at it throughout the season. We're really dynamic and have a lot of options, so we just need to focus on finishing."
    The Jumbos, who lead the league in goals, assists, points and shot percentage, have had a full week to fine-tune their game and prepare for their last obstacle of the regular season. But with the success they've witnessed lately, they don't plan on altering much. The fast-paced offense that has overwhelmed opposing defenses all year should serve them well tonight as they look to add to their already-impressive offensive accomplishments, which include outscoring their opponents 193-118 on the season.
    "The offense scored 16 goals [against Conn. College], which is great, but we're not doing anything special [to prepare]," Bloom said. "We've practiced a few things that [Bowdoin] does defensively, so we're prepared for that."
    Indeed, the psychological aspect of the game will be more important for the Jumbos and is something that they have continually stressed throughout the year.
    "With Conn. College, it was a mental thing," senior co-captain Chrissie Attura said. "We underestimated them, and they took advantage of that. We need to focus on playing our game and not faltering at any point."
    "It's very mental for us," Roberts added. "Finishing the regular season up strong and starting the postseason strong are very important."
    The implications of the Bowdoin game are not lost on the Jumbos, who won't get much rest before they enter the NESCAC Tournament on Sunday. Regardless of tonight's result, they are guaranteed home field advantage through the quarterfinals since they will finish no worse than second in the league. But the prospect of competing throughout the postseason on the friendly confines of Bello Field is a major motivating factor for Tufts tonight.
    "Having home-field advantage is key," Attura said. "It's nice not having to travel, and having lots of fans."
    Depending on the outcome of a few NESCAC games today, the Jumbos could face a number of different opponents come Sunday. If Tufts clinches the top seed, Wesleyan would be a likely first-round opponent, as the Cardinals just have to beat last-place Conn. College, coupled with a loss by either Bowdoin or Amherst, in order to secure the No. 8 spot. The Jumbos beat the Cardinals 17-6 on March 28.
    If Wesleyan loses, then the Jumbos will face Bowdoin, Bates or Amherst, who are all currently tied in the standings with 3-5 conference records. With all four teams in action today, the standings will undergo some serious reshuffling. And with the exception of Bowdoin, Tufts has faced and beaten all of its potential first-round opponents at some point in the current season.
    Despite the implications of NESCAC seeding, which could affect its chances at claiming its first-ever conference title and securing an automatic NCAA bid, Tufts refuses to look beyond tonight's battle or approach it differently from any other contest this year.
    "It's going to be a very big game," Roberts said. "And before we step off the field, NESCACs is not going to be in our minds."