On a day in which the upset bug spread around the NESCAC, the field hockey team survived its own challenge from an upstart conference rival.
Second-seeded Tufts recorded a 2-0 victory over seventh-seeded Wesleyan in the first round of the NESCAC Tournament yesterday afternoon on Bello Field. With the victory, the Jumbos advanced to a conference semifinal showdown against fifth-seeded Williams next weekend in Hartford, Conn.
Though No. 7 seeds are only 1-9 all-time in the conference tournament, a matchup against Wesleyan wasn't expected to be a cakewalk for even the nation's fifth-ranked Tufts team. The Cardinals were coming off their first winning regular season since 2005, having taken league champion Trinity to overtime on Oct. 2 and defeated two-time defending national champion Bowdoin on Oct. 10.
But Wesleyan's attempt to threaten another conference heavyweight was thwarted in the third minute, when junior forward Tamara Brown finished off a nice feed from senior co-captain Amanda Russo and gave Tufts a quick 1-0 lead. The early tally swung the momentum in the Jumbos' favor.
"They're a really great team, and they're definitely one of the toughest first round games we could have had," Russo said. "They came out strong like we knew they would, but luckily we scored a goal in the first couple minutes, which we held on to for the rest of the game."
After that first goal, however, Tufts had trouble putting Wesleyan away, despite holding a 35-3 edge in shots and a 10-0 advantage in penalty corners. Part of the reason was the play of freshman goalkeeper Tori Redding, whose 20 saves kept the Cardinals within reach. In two career matchups against the Jumbos, Redding has stopped 37 of 42 shots and significantly improved a Wesleyan defense that yielded 10 goals to Tufts during last year's season opener.
"Their goalie's amazing," coach Tina McDavitt said. "She was fantastic and just so athletic. She did a great job getting to balls that other women's goalies wouldn't get to."
But while the Jumbos were quick to credit their opponent, they also lamented their missed chances to put the game on ice.
"We need to capitalize on our opportunities or it's going to come back to bite us," McDavitt said. "We talked about that and just making sure that when you're getting a rebound or you're getting on the post that you make sure the ball is in the net."
"We missed a ton of balls in the post, and there's no excuse for that," she continued. "We just need to find that fire within ourselves to make sure that we're in the right spot and getting the job done."
However, Tufts' stifling defense made its inefficiencies on offense irrelevant. Wesleyan managed just three shots in the direction of sophomore goalkeeper Marianna Zak the entire game, none on goal.
Brown added some insurance 17:38 into the second half, cleaning up a scrum in front of the cage for her NESCAC-leading 19th goal of the season.
The Jumbos' narrow victory was part of a topsy-turvy day of tournament action, headlined by upset road victories by fifth-seeded Williams and sixth-seeded Bowdoin. Meanwhile, eighth-seeded Conn. College jumped out to an early 1-0 lead against top-seeded and national No. 4 Trinity before the Bantams rebounded for a 2-1 win.
When the NESCAC Tournament shifts to Trinity next weekend for the semifinals and finals, two of the bottom four seeds will be in action for just the second time in tournament history.
"In years past, you've just seen a couple powerhouse teams, and this year it's much more evenly spread," junior defender Amanda Roberts said. "Teams are winning close games, and lower seeds are giving higher seeds a good fight. I think that it's great that the level of competition is so high, obviously. No one is going into games thinking they're going to win or that they're going to be favored, so I think it'll spark some good competition for the postseason."
"[In] any given day in the NESCAC," McDavitt added, "the difference between No. 1 and No. 8 is so small that it's like you have to be on, you have to have a good game, and it just comes down to doing the little things well. Crazy stuff happens."
When they take the field against the Ephs next weekend, the Jumbos will be making their fourth consecutive semifinals appearance. With a 13-1 regular season now very much in the rear-view mirror, Tufts has its sights set on claiming the program's first NESCAC title.
"This is what we play for," Roberts said. "It's just a completely new season. From here on out, the competition gets better for every game, and it's do or die. We really thrive in those situations, and everyone's just really excited."
