When senior tri-captain Sarah Callaghan got up in front of her teammates and the three other Final Four opponents at the NCAA banquet last Thursday night, she couldn't help but repeatedly emphasize the importance of team unity that was stressed all season long.
Callaghan, along with fellow tri-captains Ariel Samuelson and Lindsay Garmirian, candidly admitted that this season's squad was the most special group they've ever played with.
"Everyone accepted whatever role they had completely happily and contributed all they had for the entire season, no matter what their role was," Samuelson said.
"Not until I came here did I find a team that I actually liked every single person on," Callaghan added.
It was the leadership of the trio, with the help of fellow seniors Lydia Claudio and Cate Meeker, that fostered the sense of cohesion that was a key factor in the team's remarkable success this season.
"We're really going to miss them," sophomore midfielder Martha Furtek said of the departing veterans. "They were amazing soccer players, but more importantly, they were great role models and friends."
It all started at tryouts, when, after losing seven players from last year's squad, coach Martha Whiting took on many new faces adding five freshman and two sophomore transfers to her roster. Whiting looked to the leadership of her three captains to acclimate the new players to Tufts' brand of soccer and to collegiate life in Medford.
"It was difficult for probably a week," recounted sophomore Jessie Wagner, who transferred to Tufts from Bates. "Just because I had to meet everyone, but the [three captains] really made me feel welcomed right away."
The team's season could have just as easily gone the other way after its opening day loss to Colby, but Garmirian, Callaghan, and Samuelson kept the team grounded and reassured them that things would turn around.
"After Colby we could have freaked out, but we just realized what we had to work on and that we still had potential to be a great team," Garmirian said.
In a team-oriented sport such as soccer, Tufts had a huge advantage over most of its opponents because its three captains have been the closest of friends since the first day of freshman year. Callaghan and Garmirian share a wall in the adjacent rooms of their 79 Ossipee Rd. apartment, while Samuelson was at times a virtual fifth housemate over the past two years.
"Because we're such good friends, we're always happy, and that reflects on the field," Samuelson said. "Being a cohesive unit starts at the top with the seniors and has reflected down."
"When you have so much fun together, you want to spend the most amount of time together," Callaghan added. "And when you're having fun, you naturally want to play better."
The three complimented each other on the field, where Callaghan and Samuelson started at forward and Garmirian at left midfield. Callaghan led the team and the league with eight assists to go with her two goals, giving her 12 points on the season. Her two favorite targets, Samuelson and Garmirian, had by far the best seasons of their careers statistically.
Samuelson led the team and the conference with 14 goals and 32 points and was named NESCAC Player of the Year for her breakout senior season. Garmirian, also a valuable contributor defensively from her midfield spot, tallied five goals for 10 points.
Callaghan finishes her career with a balanced 13 goals and 14 assists for 40 points, with Samuelson tallying 18 goals and four assists for 40 points as well. Garmirian chipped in with eight goals and three assists for 19 points.
Samuelson would have had far more goals and points had she not spent the first two years of her college career playing right fullback. The Newton, Mass. native admits that she enjoys the forward position much more but was willing to play defense because that was the spot available for her at the time.
"I played defense because Martha made me - just kidding, Martha," Samuelson said. "Junior year, Trombo [Jess Trombly] graduated and Sarah [Callaghan] got injured, which allowed me to move to forward. It took me a year to adjust, but overall I feel more comfortable and happy there."
All three have been playing soccer since they were in kindergarten and competed against each other on various club teams throughout high school. Callaghan, a native of Northboro, Mass., played soccer and lacrosse at Algonquin Regional High School but chose to play only soccer upon arriving at Tufts.
"Soccer has been the only constant in my life for the past 17 years aside from my family," Callaghan said. "We did really well my freshman year, and I didn't think anything could compare to this team, and I still believe that, so I decided not to try out for lacrosse. I probably wouldn't have made it anyway."
For Samuelson, life on the soccer field wasn't always easy.
"I was really bad at soccer all through elementary school up until around middle school," she admitted.
Come sixth grade, however, Samuelson made a choice that, looking back, drastically changed the course of her life.
"In sixth grade, I had to choose between horse gymnastics, where you ride around and do gymnastics on a horse, and soccer," she said. "Luckily I chose soccer, but I cried a lot. I was sad; it was a very tough decision in life."
She played soccer, lacrosse, and basketball at Newton North High School and tried out for the lacrosse team at Tufts but didn't make it.
"That was certainly a blessing in disguise because I could focus more on soccer," she said.
Garmirian, like Samuelson, also struggled on the soccer field early in life, but stuck with it through high school at Amherst Regional High School in Amherst, Mass.
"I, too, was really bad at soccer in elementary school, and I almost quit soccer but my friend Whitney's dad made me stay on the team in third grade," Garmirian said.
The three uniformly agree that life at Tufts just won't be the same next semester knowing that their Tufts soccer careers are now over.
"The saddest part of all is to lose the team," Samuelson said. "I don't know what to keep in shape for anymore."
"It's scary thinking about not being on a team that practices every day ever again," Garmirian said.
Just because they're not on the team anymore, however, doesn't mean the three won't be an active part of the Tufts soccer scene in the future.
"We're going to Disney world next year if they make the Final Four," Samuelson said with a smile. "I'm serious."
The three also agree that soccer will be a huge part of their lives in years to come.
"We'll keep playing and coaching, and I'm sure it'll be a part of all of our lives, but it'll never be the same," Garmirian said.
"I'll probably be playing until forever in some stupid league later on," Samuelson joked.
Academically, all three captains have been on the NESCAC All-Academic Team both semesters since they became eligible last year. Samuelson will graduate with a degree in Biology and Biomedical Engineering and is currently applying to medical school, while Callaghan, a Psychology major, and Garmirian, also doubling in Biology and Biomedical Engineering, are undecided about their future plans.
"We're going to miss all of the seniors, not just for their roles on the field, but what they brought to the team off the field," Furtek said. "In fact, I don't want anyone else to join the team next year because our captains and seniors are irreplaceable."
