Despite falling short in NESCAC playoffs this past weekend, Tufts field hockey received an at-large bid and now has its sights set on the National Championship. The Jumbos earned their spot in the second round after a 1–0 win over Rhode Island’s Johnson & Wales University on Wednesday night. Tufts now stands at 14–4 for the season.
On Wednesday, the lone goal was scored by senior forward Gillian Roeca with three minutes left in play in the game. This was Roeca's 12th goal of the season, and she received All-NESCAC second team honors this week.
The No. 2 Jumbos faced the No. 3 Bowdoin Polar Bears at Middlebury in the NESCAC Semifinals on Saturday. The Jumbos and Polar Bears fought back and forth. Bowdoin led 2–0 in the first half until junior midfielder Reegan McCluskey got one on the board for Tufts off of a pass from graduate co-captain and midfielder Beth Krikorian.
Despite a dominant third quarter for the Jumbos, the Polar Bears held them scoreless. Bowdoin then scored in the fourth quarter to secure the 3–1 victory. Tufts had a shot advantage of 18–5 and a penalty corners advantage of 14–3, but the team could not find the back of the net again.
In the NESCAC Quarterfinals on Sunday, Oct. 30, Tufts faced Hamilton and won 2–1 in overtime. The Jumbos were down 1–0 most of the game, and trailed in shots and corners for the first half. However, Tufts came back, and with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, sophomore forward Rachel Scrivanich scored one off of a corner for the Jumbos. Scrivanich’s goal tied the game up 1–1, which sent the game into overtime.
"There [were] around five minutes left in the game, and we were all pretty nervous that this could potentially be our last game," Scrivanich said. "My coach called me to go in and after about a minute we got a corner. The ball was inserted and passed a couple times around the circle, and finally, [McCluskey] passed it to me where I tipped it into the goal. It was really crazy and honestly a great feeling and so grateful it gave us a shot at winning the game.”
The game went into overtime and Roeca scored the game winner for the Jumbos after just three minutes of additional play. The goal was off a back handed shot from Krikorian, which Roeca tipped into the goal. The Jumbos finished the game with an advantage in shots and corners, 22–13 and 11–6 respectively. Two goalkeepers, junior Sam Gibby and senior co-captain Andie Stallman, saw action and both made crucial saves.
Sophomore forward/midfielder Ashley Zolin said, “I’m so excited to spend more time with this team. We have so much talent and strength. It is super exciting to be able to compete at the highest level in our division.”
This week, senior midfielder/defender Sophie Schoeni received NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year as well as All-NESCAC first team honors while Krikorian received All-NESCAC second team honors. Tufts will face SUNY New Paltz at Middlebury this Saturday in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
