Last year’s NCAA Div III finalists started their season off with two wins on the road in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. in their season-opener. Tufts celebrated a 60-38 victory over Keene State College on Friday night and defeated host Skidmore College 60-55 on Saturday.
Despite starting the season with two wins, junior forward Melissa Baptista believes the team still needs to shake off some of its rust and continue to build chemistry.
“I think bringing 100 percent energy on the court from minute one to minute 40 is the number one thing we all collectively need to work on,” Baptista said. “We have great athletes on our side so we should be able to run on any team. Being completely focused and disciplined on the defensive side is important as a lot of us got into foul trouble in a very close game this past Saturday. It is very early in the season and we have a lot to improve upon but our offenses and defensive chemistry will come over time.”
Tufts, currently ranked No. 1 in the nation, bested Skidmore by five points on Saturday. The Jumbos opened with a blistering start against the Thoroughbreds. Sophomore guard Jacqueline Knapp hit a three-pointer to put Tufts on the board and senior tri-captain guard Josie Lee followed with two triples of her own. Junior tri-captain point guard Lauren Dillon netted Tufts' fourth consecutive trey and junior forward Melissa Baptista tipped the ball in to put Tufts up 14-4 at the five minute mark. Several missed shots from the Jumbos, however, allowed the Thoroughbreds to close the gap to just six points by the end of the first quarter, as junior guard Kelly Donnelly led her team’s recovery with a lay-up and free throw.
The second quarter was an evenly matched affair. Baptista got the scoring underway with a three-point jump shot 33 seconds into the quarter.It was a back-and-forth affair as every Tufts' score was met with a Skidmore response. Dillon made two three-pointers in the final two minutes of the half – the second of which came on a steal by first-year guard Sadie Otley – and the Jumbos entered half time with a 32-25 lead.
Skidmore’s fight back came in the third quarter, as the team outscored Tufts 18-13 to set up a dramatic final period. A series of fouls on Tufts sent Skidmore to the line four times in the last 2:30 of the third quarter. The Thoroughbreds netted seven of their eight chances and narrowed the Jumbos' lead to just two at 45-43.
The Thoroughbreds took the lead early in the fourth quarter, as they made the first three shots of the period, scoring six unanswered points. Donnelly’s lay-up with 4:31 to play gave the hosts a 49-45 lead. Knapp's three point shot with 2:46 left on the clock, brought the Jumbos back within striking range before Thoroughbred junior guard Veronica Moceri’stwo free throws put her team up three. Baptista leveled the score on an and one, with two minutes to play.
Donnelly finished with a game-high 20 points and a team-high nine rebounds, as well as one assist.
The Jumbos outscored the Thoroughbreds 9-4 through the buzzer. Otley made two free throws with under a minute to play, before hitting a three-pointer to put the Jumbos up five.Dillon then effectively sealed the game for the Jumbos with a pair of free throws with seven seconds left on the clock.
It was an all-around team effort that led the Jumbos to victory. Dillon posted a team-high 13 points and a game-high five assists. Senior tri-captain Michela North picked up six points and a game-high 10 rebounds, while Lee scored eight points. Knapp recorded a full line of 12 points, four rebounds and three assists, and Otley led the first-year class, contributing seven points from the bench.
North said she was impressed with how the first-years have transitioned into the team. This was all the more essential on Saturday, given that the Jumbos committed 24 fouls.
“I was really impressed and happy that they got some good minutes and definitely [helped] the team,” North said. “[Otley] hitting that three at the end of the Skidmore game was what really won us the game, so that was amazing. I think they showed some improvement from the first game to the second game too, the first game you could tell they were kind of nervous, like throughout the game, [they] didn’t want to mess up, but even in the second game you could already tell that they had more confidence in themselves.”
Tufts’ start to the season was a little more comfortable on Friday night as the team led from start to finish against Keene State. The first half demonstrated Tufts’ dominance, as the team raced to an 11-0 lead with baskets from Lee, Baptista, Dillon and Knapp. The Keene State Owls only managed to get on the board with 04:20 in the first quarter and the Jumbos led comfortably 17-2 at the end of the first. Tufts entered halftime with a 28-14 lead.
The Jumbos effectively sealed the game in the third quarter as they outscored the Owls 14-8. Seven Tufts players scored in the period. Remarkably, twelve different Tufts players scored overall, as the team played almost its entire bench. Dillon led the team with 10 points and six rebounds, while North recorded a game-high nine rebounds. North also stole the ball three times. Collectively, the bench contributed 33 points, as senior forward Katy Hicks collected five rebounds and sophomore forward Katie Martensen recorded two blocks.
Going into its next two games at home, Dillon believes the team can continue building on its performances from the weekend.
“I think just having the experience from this weekend and hopefully a little more confidence will help going into the game on Tuesday,” Dillon said. “We need to work our offenses a little more, we have some new ones and we need to be better executing them. We’ve consistently been a defensive team, and there are things we can work on there, like not fouling as much. So I think it comes down to execution on offense and getting back to basics on defense.”
Tufts' next game is its home-opener against Wheaton College at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, followed by another home game against Brandeis at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Jumbos open season with two victories in N.Y.
