Two minutes into the second half of Saturday's NCAA Quarterfinal match, freshman forward Jess Trombly scored the game-winning goal for Tufts, firing a shot past William Smith goalkeeper Leah Cornwell for the only score of the day. The 1-0 win over the visiting Heron's boosted the team to 17-3-1 on the year, extending its record-setting season.
The Jumbos will now move on to semi-finals of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in the history of the program. The Final Four will be held this weekend at a site to be determined. Tufts is a strong candidate to host the games, since the NCAA makes its decision based heavily on travel expenses.
The College of New Jersey, which advanced to the Final Four with a 1-0 win over Ohio Wesleyan on Saturday, is considered to be within driving distance of Boston, but cannot host because of its artificial turf field, unless it can find suitable field nearby. The other two teams, Trinity (Texas) and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, would have to fly to any location, making Kraft Field the least expensive choice.
"It would be great to host it," senior tri-captain Sara Yeatman said. "It would really pump us up to play at home and get a lot of fans out."
"It would be great playing at home," coach Martha Whiting said. "One of the goals we set at the beginning of the year was to go undefeated at home, and we've done that so far. It plays a big role in our mental psyche before the game. This is our field, and no one is going to come in and beat us."
Tufts opened up Saturday's game dominating play, moving the ball well despite rough field conditions. After a day and a half of rain, the ground had become extremely soggy and had patches of standing water to accompany the mud. The two teams were able to adjust well, however, playing hard throughout.
"In the first half, we dominated a little more," Yeatman said. "The field was muddy and hard to play on - people on both teams were flying around, but it was a hard-fought game on both sides."
It looked as though the Jumbos had taken the lead midway through the period, as sophomore Alle Sharlip finished a ball coming in off a corner kick. The referee ruled that the kick had curved out of bounds before coming into play, however, invalidating the score. The disallowed goal gave the Herons a chance to get back into the game, and the rest of the half saw the teams play the ball back and forth evenly.
"We came out really strong and dominated the first 15 minutes," Whiting said. "After [the goal was called back], we got a little bit flat. We really let them into the game. From there, it was fairly even, pretty back-and-forth, for most of the first half.
With less than three minutes left to go before the break, a William Smith player went down with a broken leg after a collision with senior tri-captain goalkeeper Randee McArdle in front of the Tufts net. Play was stopped for 25 minutes as she was attended to, but the break did not seem to affect either side.
The Jumbos were finally able to take advantage of a scoring opportunity, with Trombly netting her goal, the sixth of the season for the NESCAC Rookie of the Year, early in the second frame. The play developed as the Trombly took the ball after a defensive stop by junior Becky Mann and pushed it up the left side. She maneuvered her way through the William Smith defense and blasted the ball into the upper right-hand corner of the net to give the Jumbos a 1-0 lead.
"It was a beautiful shot from the left side," Yeatman said, describing the play. "Their goalkeeper was one of best in the country, so it was great that we could score on her."
"We scored pretty much right away in the second half," Whiting said. "It is so huge when you can score in the beginning of a half. It sets the tone for the rest of the period."
Although William Smith would respond to the goal with a strong offensive, the Tufts defense was up to the task, turning away the Herons time after time. Tufts picked up the intensity over the final 15 minutes of the game, pushing the ball downfield to chew up the clock. But even so, the Herons were able to keep up their attack through the final whistle.
"They took it to us for a lot of the second half," Whiting said. "[The end of the game] was the most nervous I have ever been in my career, both as a coach and as a player. With the conditions the way they were, it was just scary. The players stayed calm and composed, though, and they got it done."
Trombly's lone goal proved to be the difference, as senior tri-captain Randee McArdle made nine saves to earn her eighth shutout of the season.
"It was a hard-fought game on both sides," Yeatman said. "Our defense played especially tough, and did a good job of holding them off and shutting them down."
"With the way our defense has been playing, I feel like all we need is one goal," Whiting said. "It's always nice to score two or three so you have a little more breathing room, but we have a great defense and a great keeper, so I usually feel like one is enough."
The Jumbos now move on to the NCAA Final Four, where they will face the Pointers of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. As is the case for most teams in late-round tournament games, Tufts does not know much about the team it will match up against this Saturday, having never before seen it in action.
The Pointers advanced to the Final Four with a 2-0 win over Salisbury State, which entered the game as Division III's only undefeated team, at 20-0-2. The Pointers, at 22-4, have now won 16 straight contests, and boast one of the nation's most prolific scorers in senior forward Marie Muhvic, who has tallied 73 points on 30 goals and 13 assists so far this season.
The other semi-final game will feature the College of New Jersey (21-1) and Trinity (20-1-1), with the winners of the two matches meeting for the National Championship.
"Honestly, I hoped we would be here, but I never thought we'd actually be playing up until Thanksgiving," Yeatman said. "We couldn't have hoped for more. We know when our last practice is going to be, and that we've taken it as far as we can take it. That's just a great feeling. There's no better way to go out - no better way to end my college career."
