The No. 1 men's lacrosse team will face arguably its toughest NESCAC game of the season at home on Saturday against Wesleyan.
Although the game is technically as important as any other NESCAC game — most of these teams are good enough to beat each other on any given day — there is no denying that Wesleyan will provide a litmus test for how Tufts stacks up with the rest of the conference's contenders.
At 6-1, the Cardinals are in a tie for third in the NESCAC and ranked 16th nationally. Their season highlights include a 9-8 overtime victory over Middlebury on March 19. Yet Wesleyan is also coming off an ugly 12-7 loss to Bates, where the Bobcats earned their first NESCAC victory since 2009. But if the Jumbos' unconvincing 14-13 victory over Western New England College on Monday afternoon proved anything, it's that scores in previous games can't predict the future (WNEC lost 18-8 to Stevenson, whom Tufts beat).
What will matter this weekend is that these two teams have been known to bring a little extra passion to the table when going head to head. The rivalry is burgeoning but powerful. Wesleyan triumphed over Tufts 14-10 in the 2009 NESCAC Championship game, while the Jumbos eked out an 11-10 win over the Cardinals in last season's NESCAC semifinals. This game is also at a time when early-season energy starts to wane, and teams begin to separate in the standings.
A Tufts victory would keep the Jumbos in first place in the NESCAC, either in a tie with Trinity or as the sole No. 1 if the Bantams lose to Williams, also on Saturday. A win for the Cardinals would be momentous for them, as they would take down the No. 1 team in the nation, hand the Jumbos a loss on Bello Field for the first time since 2009 and, most importantly, even themselves with the Jumbos in the standings, potentially in a tie for the top spot.
"Wesleyan loves beating Tufts, and we love beating Wesleyan," senior quad-captain attackman Ryan Molloy said. "We're expecting their best game, but it isn't any different than what we are expecting from the rest of our league. Obviously they're a huge rival and we're at a pivotal point in our league season."
Even with all this in mind, the Jumbos, as usual, are coming at the game with the level-headedness of champions.
"Wesleyan beating Middlebury and losing to Bates doesn't really surprise us," Molloy said. "It's the NESCAC, and that is just some more proof of the cliche that anyone can beat anyone. We just need to come out and play Tufts lacrosse, and the rest should fall into place."
After a handful of mishaps and miscommunications that led to a near disaster against WNEC, the Jumbos have focused on suturing the gaps in their defense while making sure not to wear themselves thin before Saturday's big game.
"As a defense, we have talked about being less hesitant to slide," senior quad-captain longstick midfielder Alec Bialosky said. "Every time we slid and had the proper communication, we were successful, so we need to work on sliding faster and more often."
Aside from mechanical or positional improvements, Molloy said the Jumbos must be sure to maintain their concentration for the full game — the lack of which nearly derailed their perfect season on Monday.
"We're taking this week to make sure we're all focused on rest and recovery both mentally and physically because Saturday is a huge game for our team," he said. "We're focusing on coming out to play for 60 minutes. WNEC is a very talented team and if you make mistakes and don't play a full 60-minute game, they are going to capitalize like they did. When we take five, 10 minutes off, they are going to put runs together."
The game will come down to mental toughness. The Jumbos know they have the talent to win this game, and they believe the only team that can beat them is themselves. It might be a game of offensive runs, or it might be a defensive struggle. But whatever it proves to be, it will be exciting and passionate.
"They beat us in the NESCAC Championship game two years ago, and I think everyone who was on that team remembers it," Bialosky said. "We don't like them and they don't like us, so every year you know it's going to be a battle. This year won't be any different."
