Just two minutes into Tuesday's contest against Clark, junior center Emily Goodman reached a career milestone. Her 15-foot jumper swished through the net, giving her 1001 career points and making her only the seventh female Jumbo to reach the 1,000-point mark. But the celebration was brief - Tufts soon found itself in a double overtime battle, and despite comebacks in regulation and the first extra frame, lost 76-62 after a disastrous final five minutes.
The loss was the fifth in the past seven games for Tufts, which now stands at 7-7, but the team was pleased with its performance against a reputable Clark team (11-6). After yielding 93 points to Bates on Saturday, the 52 points scored by Clark in regulation testified to a stronger Tufts defense.
"Our defense was a million times better than at Bates," Goodman said. "We need to have a good defensive game if we are going to have a good offensive game."
"Compared to the 40 point loss to Bates, this was much better," junior guard Erin Harrington said. "We couldn't pull it off in the end, but there were plenty of things to be happy about."
Trailing by 11 points towards the end of regulation, Tufts battled to tie the game after a Goodman lay-up with only two seconds remaining. The Cougars jumped out to a five-point lead in the first overtime period, but the Jumbos had an answer. Mimicking the drama from regulation, freshman Krissy Nierenberg drained a lay-up as time expired, deadlocking the game at 60.
There was no such drama in the second overtime - Clark went on a 14-0 run to end the game. The biggest difference Clark's ability to get to the free-throw line.
"[Clark] went to the foul line about three times as much as us," Goodman said. "The calls weren't really going our way. But when we did go to the foul line our shooting percentage wasn't as high. If it was, we could have won the game in regulation."
Goodman, who led Tufts with 19 points and ten rebounds, is currently tied with Paula Moss '82 for sixth place in Jumbos scoring with 1018. She also became the last person since Jodi Beach in 1995 to reach the 1000-point milestone. With a season and a half remaining in her Tufts career, Goodman is within striking distance of Teresa Allen '89, who compiled 1,257 points in her career.
Senior co-captain Jayme Busnengo was the only other Jumbo to finish in double digits, with 10 points. The team's entire roster saw time in the loss.
"The NESCAC games are close and intense like that," Goodman said. "It is good for the younger players to experience that."
After five straight road games, the Jumbos will return home this weekend to play a pair of NESCAC contests against Trinity (7-6) tomorrow night and Amherst (8-7) on Saturday. After playing ten of its last 12 games on the road, the team is looking forward to the upcoming five-game homestand.
"It will be nice to play at home," Goodman said. "After travelling for two and a half hours you are already at a disadvantage. We will be pumped to play in front of the home crowd."
@s: Squad anxious to return to home court
