Endicott rising senior midfielder Jeremy Morgan took a shot with under two minutes remaining in the second round NCAA Championship game, which clanked off the goal post, allowing Tufts to maintain a 10-9 advantage. It was the closest the Gulls could come to evening the score, as the Jumbos ran out the clock, holding on to advance to the NCAA quarterfinals for the fifth year in a row.
It was a rematch from a bout on April 8 at Bello Field that Tufts won more comfortably 18-13. This time, when the stakes were higher, the Gulls proved to be much more difficult for the Jumbos to handle.
Tufts was coming off a resounding 24-2 victory over Emmanuel College in the opening round of the tournament. In typical fashion, the Jumbos had an explosive first period, converting 12 goals in the first 15 minutes to set the pace for a big win. Fourteen Jumbos scored in the game, as graduating senior tri-captain midfielder Beau Wood led the way with five goals and an assist.
Prior to that victory, Tufts captured its fifth-straight conference title against Amherst in a 20-13 win. Graduating senior goalie Patton Watkins stopped a career-high 24 shots while Wood once again led the way offensively with five goals. Graduating senior midfielder Peter Bowers' three goals proved to be the spark during a 6-1 run that broke a 9-9 tie between the two teams at the beginning of the third quarter. The win gave the Jumbos an automatic berth to the NCAA Championship.
In the matchup with Endicott, things started much slower than usual for a Tufts offense ranked second in the nation in scoring. Endicott struck first and kept a 2-0 lead until the waning minutes of the first quarter. Tufts then scored four on two goals from Bowers, one from rising senior midfielder Peter Gill and one from rising junior attackman John Uppgren building a 4-2 lead a minute into the second period. From then on, the two teams alternated goals until the final whistle.
Though it was the closest game all year for the Jumbos, the team was prepared after facing tough competition from NESCAC and non-conference opponents alike throughout the regular season.
"We play a competitive schedule top to bottom and we have been in a few close games this season our players believe in each other and believe in the process," senior midfielder Jack McDermott told the Daily in an email. "We know that we have done everything to that point to prepare, it just takes one or two guys to step up and make a play. We were able to do so against a high-caliber team like Endicott."
In the remainder of the first half, rising senior attackman Chris Schoenhut and Bowers netted goals for Tufts, while rising senior midfielder Harrison Cotter, rising sophomore attackman Colin Bannon and rising senior attackman Kyle Weber answered for Endicott to pull the score to 6-5 in favor of Tufts headed into intermission.
After halftime, rising senior attackman Cole Bailey started the scoring off with an unassisted goal. Rising senior attackman Nick Pinciaro of Endicott answered with his first of two goals before Schoenhut and he traded goals until the end of the third period to set the score at 9-7.
Weber hit a shot at the 13:27 mark to pull Endicott within one point of leading, but Gill's strike four minutes later would push the score back to 10-8. Junior attackman Jonathan Morgan netted the Gulls' final goal at the 6:10 mark, but ultimately it would be one too few to force an overtime period. Despite being a man down after a penalty at the 2:10 mark, Tufts was able to keep the ball in the offensive zone to run down the clock and secure the win.
"[Endicott] has a great offensive group and a tough defensive group," head coach Mike Daly said of the close contest. "[I] was a little disappointed at times; I felt we had opportunities to gain some momentum and put a little bit of distance on them, but Endicott made every play it needed to make to keep [the game] close, and our guys made every play ... We knew it was going to be a dogfight."
Watkins finished the day with 16 saves, making five in both the second and third quarters. Daly earned his 200th career victory in his 16th season leading the Jumbos.
The Tufts lacrosse program, making its seventh NCAA Championship appearance, is no stranger to the contested play that comes with advancing into the later stages of the tournament.
"I think our past experience playing in May just helps us understand how special this time of year truly is there's only a handful of teams nationwide that end up playing well into May," McDermott said. "Earning the opportunity to spend more time with our teammates and coaches is as great as it gets."
Eight Jumbos recently received All-NESCAC honors with the conclusion of conference play. Bailey was named Player of the Year while Daly split Coach of the Year honors with Williams' George McCormack. Bailey, Wood, Uppgren, Helfrich and graduating senior tri-captain Kane Delaney all earned first team All-NESCAC honors. Schoenhut and graduating senior tri-captain Dan Alles were second team All-NESCAC honorees.
This season matches 2007 for the greatest number of players receiving accolades. It is just one of the many accomplishments that display the team's stellar work ethic and eagerness to compete.
"The defining quality of this year's team is just a bunch of great guys that love spending time with the team," McDermott said. "Every day guys come to play and it's the best part of all our days that's the kind of team everyone wants to be a part of, and now we're just looking to maximize this opportunity. I'm most proud of our overall consistency and attention to detail we had two loses earlier in the season, and our team has responded to this adversity by increasing our focus and commitment to our primary goal: to win a national championship."12
