NESCAC Postseason Updates

Tufts ice hockey repeated last year's David-taking-down-Goliath feat this weekend to stay alive in the NESCAC hockey tournament. Going into the tournament as the eighth seed, Tufts played top-seeded Williams on Saturday and upset the favorites 2-1 in the quarterfinals once again, despite being expected to lose after being shut out in both regular season games against Williams this season. In a similar situation last postseason, the No. 8 seed Jumbos upset the top-seeded Trinity Bantams 2-1 in the quarterfinals as well. The Bantams would go on to win the NCAA championship game, and though Jumbos made it to the semifinals, they were eliminated in the next round of the tournament by Amherst. The Jumbos look to show off their giant-killer prowess again this Saturday as they take on the Bantams, now the No. 2 seed, in Hartford in the NESCAC semifinals.

The men's basketball team was eliminated from the NESCAC tournament on Saturday after losing a tight 86-83 contest against Amherst in the semifinals. Tufts had beaten Williams the previous weekend at home and, as the tournament's No. 3 seed, faced off against No. 2 seed Amherst at Trinity. Sophomore guard Vincent Pace put up an impressive 33 points to lead Tufts' best-in-the-NESCAC offense, but Amherst's second-best offense was able to keep its team on top. The high-octane game was close throughout, with the lead changing nine times. Down by three with 11 seconds left on the clock, the Jumbos tried for an equalizer, but senior tri-captain Ryan Spadaford's three-point attempt as time expired did not fall in. Tufts now waits to hear if the team will receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, which is likely, given that the team was ranked third in the Northeast in the latest poll behind Amherst and Trinity after recording a 20-6 record up through this weekend.

Look for full coverage of both of these games in tomorrow's issue.