Not every group of seniors can say that they won the final game of their career.
Too bad, for the graduating members of the women's lacrosse team, that it was only a makeup game after Tufts lost in the first round of the NESCAC playoffs.
Falling to Amherst in the playoffs, the Jumbos - including seniors Kristin Saldarelli, Christie Langenberg, and Lauren Peach - played a makeup game at Babson, beating the Beavers handily, 15-5.
The team would not have ended the season at .500 without the play of the uncharacteristically large nine-player freshman class. With two first-year and three sophomore starters, the 2004 Jumbos were certainly a young team. But it was the three seniors, all captains, who led the team to the first round of the NESCAC playoffs at Amherst.
"Even though the season didn't end the way we wanted, we were able to end with a really good game against Amherst and we were able to end the season with a win," attack Saldarelli said. "Not many teams do and it's not something most seniors can say."
Saldarelli has started every game since the beginning of her sophomore year, playing in a total of 50 contests. She led the team in assists in both the 2002 and 2004 seasons, with 14 and 11 respectively.
Saldarelli had her highest scoring season as a sophomore, when she netted 18 goals, but this season she seemed to be a part of almost every offensive play.
"She's not a very prolific scorer, but she's a very good passer," coach Carol Rappoli said. "She sees the field very well and is a very unselfish player. As a senior she had her best year."
Defender Christie Langenberg missed one game this season, only the second match of her career in which she did not play. Langenberg led the team in ground balls in both her freshman and junior years, and picked up 39 for the Jumbos this spring.
"[Langenberg] is a three-year starter, and as a freshman she was the first kid we brought in defensively," Rappoli said. "[She's] small in stature, but she's been a very tough defender for four years."
Langenberg's favorite game as a Jumbo was this year's final home game against Colby. The Jumbos won that game 12-5 to stay in the playoff hunt.
"Playing Colby this year we'd come off really tough losses," Langenberg said. "It was the last home game for me and the two other seniors ... Colby's kind of a big rival of ours. [Beating them] for our last game, it was an awesome feeling."
Midfielder Lauren Peach is the only one of the three to have started all 55 games of her collegiate career. This year she had another outstanding season, picking up 53 groundballs, causing 38 turnovers, and scoring eight goals.
Peach's intensity on the field is hard to match, and she is constantly in the middle of play - whether it be defending the Tufts goal or trying to score one for the team.
"She has an incredible work ethic," Rappoli said of Peach. "This year she made a tremendous jump ... she made the All-NESCAC team and she's one of the key players able to carry us on her back during game situations."
In a season that could have gone either way with the large freshman and sophomore contingent, Saldarelli, Langenberg, and Peach ended their careers on high notes.
"This season was really different than any other season," Saldarelli said. "Half of our team were freshmen and we ended up having incredible team chemistry. Everyone was really supportive of everyone and everything."
