The men's soccer team's youth proved a valuable resource for coach Ralph Ferrigno yesterday as the Jumbos triumphed over the non-league Salve Regina Seahawks 4-2 on Kraft Field.
"This was the youngest team I've fielded as a coach here at Tufts," Ferrigno said. "I am very happy we won, especially due to the injury dropouts."
Sophomore forward Mattia Chason scored both the game-tying and game-winning goals en route to the victory. The first-time starter's two tallies were the first of his varsity career and tied him with junior forward Todd Gilbert as the season's scoring leader.
"I was given an opportunity to start," Chason pointed out, "And I took it. I am very happy."
The Jumbos, hit by injuries to several key veterans, were forced to field a team filled with freshmen and other new players like Chason. Though the young team clearly dominated the ball against a tightly closed Seahawk defense early on, Salve Regina took advantage of its counter- attack opportunities to pounce on scoring chances.
The Seahawks hit the back of the net first after a well-executed counter -attack. The ball, initially well-saved by senior goalkeeper Matt Sullivan, took a Salve bounce and landed on forward Chris Moran's foot which directed it into an empty goal.
Despite the 1-0 score, Tufts kept the pressure on the Seahawk defense by taking numerous shots and even hitting the post in the 21st minute. Luck again worked against the Jumbos four minutes later when junior forward Todd Gilbert had a breakaway chance thwarted by the Seahawk keeper.
The Jumbos had numerous good looks at the goal in the box, but their finishing was not on par for much of the first half. While controlling the game in the air, the Tufts offense was primarily vertical with the wingers feeding solid crosses to the forwards who had trouble finding ways to put the ball away.
Tufts would find itself in an even deeper hole in the 28th minute when Salve Regina scored its second goal of the day after a messy play in the box. The Tufts defense couldn't do anything to get the ball away from the goal mouth, and Seahawk forward Jarrod Anderson tapped the ball in.
Down 2-0, Ferrigno was concerned with his team's position in the match, but credits his few starting veterans for helping to motivate the team.
"I knew time was on our side," Ferrigno said, "But young teams have a tendency to panic in these situations. Luckily, we had experienced players like Gilbert to lead our younger players."
Just one minute after the second Salve goal, Gilbert pulled the Jumbos back within one, after taking advantage of one of the only spaces the Salve Regina defense gave him during the whole game. The veteran
attacker broke through and beat the Salve keeper to put Tufts back in the game.
In the second half, Chason finally illustrated that the Jumbos do have the ability to finish consistently in front of the goal.
Chason scored the second Jumbo goal of the afternoon after several elegant touches to get by the defense.
"I had a good touch to get by both defenders," Mattia said. "After that I just hit it as hard as I could into the corner."
After the equalizer, the scene was set for the Jumbo come back. Chason, again, pounded the ball into the right corner of the Salve Regina goal after receiving a header pass from Gilbert, who ended the day with a goal and two assists.
Near the end of the game, Tufts freshman Alex Bedig scored a final insurance goal after a confusing play in the box. Freshman Bob Kastoff put the ball in front and after a strange combination of kicks, Bedig was able to elude the often acrobatic Salve keeper to tap the ball into the net.
Matt Sullivan secured eight saves in the game, six of them coming in the first half before the momentum shifted in Tufts' favor.
The win was the second of the season for the Jumbos and pushed their record to 2-1-1 (1-1 NESCAC). The team will now turn its attention to this Saturday's game on the road against NESCAC rival Amherst. The Lord Jeffs are unbeaten so far this season and are coming off of a 6-1 mauling of Rivier College.
