Women's soccer gets revenge against Babson

The women's soccer team improved to 2-1 with an impressive 2-0 shutout over the cross-town rival Babson Beavers yesterday afternoon on Kraft Field. The Jumbos controlled play for most of the game, possessing the ball well and forcing the Beavers to try to adjust to Tufts' style of play.

The win avenged the Jumbos' 4-1 season-opening loss to Babson last year, a game in which the team was unable to recover after losing its starting goalkeeper to a red card in the first half.

"Everyone was really pumped up for this game," senior co-captain Alle Sharlip said. "We felt like we didn't deserve to lose [last year], and we wanted to redeem ourselves."

The Jumbos did just that, opening up the game with strong play from front to back, something they have been working hard at, after struggling in the opening minutes all last year.

"One of our goals is to come out and go as hard as we can for the first three minutes," coach Martha Whiting said. "We make a conscious effort to go out and bust our butts in the beginning, and that usually carries over to the rest of the game. We came out on a high from our win over Amherst, and it was important for us to prove that that was not just a fluke."

Although the Jumbos came out strong, the play of the game was relatively even for the first ten to 15 minutes, with Babson's few good chances coming early on.

The first of these came on a shot that bounced down off the crossbar in front of the Tufts net. Jumbo goalie Meg McCourt had moved out to contest the shot, leaving the frame unprotected, but the Tufts defense did an excellent job collapsing on the ball, clearing it to keep the Beavers off the board.

Babson continued to put together counter-attacks, missing wide and forcing McCourt to make a couple of saves. But the defense repeatedly came together, and it played stronger and stronger as the game wore on, which limited the effectiveness of the Beaver offensives pushes.

"We had to make a couple simple defensive adjustments in the first few minutes," Whiting said. "We needed to get pressure on the ball quicker and not give them time or space to get their heads up and see the field."

"In the beginning, they were playing the long ball," senior co-captain Cara Glassanos added. "When we started to settle and pass to feet, it really came together for us."

Sophomore Sarah Gelb opened up the scoring for Tufts in the 23rd minute, taking a picture-perfect cross from classmate Jen Baldwin and heading the ball just over the outstretched hands of the Babson keeper. The goal was the first of Gelb's collegiate career.

With the assist, Baldwin, who was Johns Hopkins' leading scorer last year before transferring to Tufts, assumes that role for the Jumbos with three points in as many games.

The Jumbos continued to pour on the pressure through the end of the first period, coming close to adding to their lead on a number of occasions. Sophomore Becky Greenstein hooked the ball into the net from the left corner just minutes after Gelb's score, but the ball crossed the endline before the kick, resulting in a goal kick. Later in the period, Babson keeper Katie McCackin carried a Tufts corner kick into her own goal, but the referee ruled that she had been pushed in, negating the score.

The second half saw more of the same, as Tufts kept up a relentless attack on the Beaver defense. Babson played most of the period on its own side of the field, occasionally pushing the ball across midfield, only to see it fly back again.

"We definitely improved as the game went along. The team in general is coming together, and is starting to work together as a cohesive unit," Sharlip said.

Tufts got some insurance in the 64th minute as senior midfielder Elizabeth Tooley knocked in her first goal of the year. Tooley took the ball on a bloop feed from junior Abby Herzberg, shielded it from a Babson defender and fired it to the left of the keeper to double the team's lead.

As the game wore on, Whiting experimented with her lineup, getting in valuable playing time for some of her younger players. But, despite their inexperience, the newest Jumbos played just as strong as their upperclassman counterparts, continuing to dominate the flow of the game.

"I got the opportunity to see some people play who I hadn't seen before," Whiting said. "And everyone I put out there did a great job. There was no drop off when I made substitutions _ with some, we got even better. Every year the pool of players we get just gets better and better. This group learns quickly and they're all very coachable."

Tufts finished the game with 21 shots and ten corner kicks, compared to just seven and two for the Beavers. McCourt needed just three saves to pick up her second consecutive shutout, and the third of her career.

The Jumbos will try to extend their winning streak to three this Saturday at home against NESCAC-rival Connecticut College. The Camels are 1-2, including conference losses to Amherst and Williams.

"Any NESCAC opponent, you get really psyched up for. Every team is good, which is not unusual," Whiting said. "We need to be on top of our game. Conn. is always tough, and they need a NESCAC win. But I feel like we have a very strong team and that we have the ability to beat most of the teams out there.