After losing a heartbreaking match and junior Kelli Harrison to injury in the second round of the MIT Invitational, the Jumbos recovered to win their next two matches, finishing the weekend at 3-1, and earning a fifth-place finish in the tournament.
The team defeated NESCAC rival Williams 3-0 on Saturday afternoon to grab the championship in the tournament's gold bracket and leave on a positive note.
"Overall, I thought we played with a lot of heart and we gave a lot of energy," senior co-captain Courtney Evans said. "I thought we did a great job."
The Jumbos edged Williams for the second time already this season, having beaten the Ephs in the final of the Williams Invitational, 3-1.
This time, the Jumbos stumbled at the outset against the Ephs, falling behind 18-11 in the first game before recovering to claim the game 30-28. They went on to win the next two games, 30-25 and 30-27, to sweep the match.
"Our assistant coach, Lauren [Knight], said before the game that beating a team once doesn't mean anything," Evans said. "Beating a team twice shows that you're better than them."
The match's close scores were indicative of a tournament that turned out tight scores all weekend, as ten of Tufts' 16 games were decided by five points or fewer. The Jumbos were 8-2 in those close contests.
"It's stressful [to play in those close games], but you can't play safely because that's not going to win the game," said freshman Kaitlin O'Reilly, who was named to the all-tournament team. "You just have got to play your hardest and go all out."
On Saturday morning, the team paved the way for the match with Williams by defeating Wellesley 3-1. After winning the first two matches 30-25 and 30-22, the Jumbos stumbled, losing 30-23, before closing out the match with a 30-26 victory.
Thompson was impressed with the team's ability to rebound from its loss to Coast Guard that had ended very late on Friday.
"For us to bounce back from an emotional defeat like the Coast Guard one and beat a team like Wellesley, that's great," Thompson said.
The Jumbos were playing without starting outside hitters Harrison and sophomore Kay Lutostanski, who suffered a minor injury late Friday night.
Tufts hosted two matches on Friday, beating Muhlenberg College 3-1 before dropping a tense five-game match to the Coast Guard Academy. Against Coast Guard, one of just four teams to get the better of the Jumbos last season, Tufts ran out to a quick lead, scoring the first five points and grabbing an 18-5 edge en route to a 30-21 first game victory.
After a spike by sophomore Katie Wysham made it 7-2 in the second game, the Bears woke up, catching the Jumbos at 13 before taking a 20-16 lead. The Jumbos kept it interesting, pulling to within one at 26-25, but Coast Guard closed out the match with a 4-1 run. Tufts held the lead for almost the entire third game after rebounding from a 2-0 deficit. Coast Guard finished strong however, turning a 25-23 deficit into a 30-27 win.
It appeared that Coast Guard's momentum would carry over as the Bears ran out to an 8-1 lead in the fourth game. With the Jumbos trailing 24-16, and the chances of victory looking slim, Tufts stormed back to tie the game at 28-28 on a Harrison spike. Tufts pulled out the game with kills by senior co-captain April Gerry and Harrison to force a fifth game.
"I think it was our drive [that fueled the comeback]," O'Reilly said. "We realized we wanted it. You have to play one point at a time. That's what allows you to come from [nine] points down, like we did against Coast Guard."
The Jumbos appeared to be in good shape in the fifth game, holding a 9-7 lead, but Coast Guard scored eight in a row to claim the game and the match.
The evening was marred by a tense moment when Harrison went down right in front of the Tufts bench with Coast Guard leading 12-9. On a ball in the back corner of the court, Harrison's legs got tangled up with those of freshman libero Natalie Goldstein and Harrison fell face-first on the floor.
The team watched as Harrison rolled on the ground in pain. While she was helped off and replaced on the court by sophomore Stephanie Viola, the Jumbos lost their momentum and saw the match slip away.
Harrison will have what is believed to be a left quad injury examined tomorrow. While the extent of the injury is unknown, Thompson expects her main offensive threat back within a week or two.
The team opened the tournament sluggishly against Muhlenberg, falling behind 9-2 en route to a 30-26 loss. After starting the second game tied 7-7, the Jumbos went on a 23-7 run to tie up the match at two games apiece.
"I thought we got off to a close start, but I was really proud of how we stepped it up," Thompson said. "We picked up the pace of our game and we started to minimize errors as we went along, and I think that's a huge part of our success there towards the end."
Following a tight 30-27 victory, the Jumbos found themselves locked up in another tough match, down 28-27. After the Mules coughed up momentum with a service error and Wysham gave Tufts the lead with a block, freshman Maya Ripecky iced the match with an ace.
After an emotional weekend, Tufts will prepare this week to host the second-ever Tufts Invitational this Friday at Cousens Gym.
