The men's ultimate frisbee team lost two of its last three contests at New England Regionals on May 6-7 to finish in fourth place, two spots shy of Nationals.
While the women's season continues at Nationals, the men will head to the offseason. Despite the loss, the tournament featured two dramatic comeback victories for the E-Men.
"We did think that we had a lot better chance at Nationals than we did last year," sophomore RJ Phannenstill said. "Last year, we had a couple good players, but the team didn't work very well together. This year, I'd say we had the most talented team in the Northeast. We have a good program that works to get a lot of good players, not just one or two superstars."
The E-men finished third at Metro Boston Sectionals on Apr. 22-23, setting up their entrance to Regionals as the seventh seed. After holding serve against 10th-seeded Wesleyan, Tufts fell behind against Boston University, the Sectional champions and Regionals second seed.
The Terriers pounced all over the E-Men early on, snagging a 5-1 lead. Staring down what would have been a debilitating loss, Tufts bounced back and grabbed a 12-11 lead before hanging on for a 15-14 win over the frontrunners.
"It was a little frustrating at the beginning because they took a quick 5-1 lead on us," senior captain Rob Spies said. "So we were in the hole from the beginning and we really had to work hard to dig ourselves out. We could have lain down and given up the game there, but every one showed how bad they wanted it."
In the next round, Tufts matched up with Boston Sectional runner-up Harvard. The two teams traded points most of the way, but Harvard got a key break at the end to earn a 13-11 win, putting the E-Men in the unenviable spot of needing three straight wins to qualify for Nationals.
The E-Men quickly fell behind 8-3 to Dartmouth in a must-win game to keep their season alive. Feeling its season slipping away at halftime, the team talked about having fun and relaxing and came out in the second half with a renewed enthusiasm and a zone defense designed to confuse Dartmouth.
Both combined to bring the E-Men back into the game. Tufts knotted the contest at 13 before pulling off another 15-14 come-from-behind victory.
Just five minutes after their hard-fought victory over Dartmouth, the E-Men had to get back on the field to face UMass. Despite the quick turnaround, the E-Men inched a step closer to a Nationals bid, taking an 11-9 lead.
"UMass is very talented team as far as athletic skill goes, but they're kind of head cases, so it was tough to beat them when they were on their game and playing together," Phannenstill said. "Once we'd get a break or score while on defense, they would get flustered and we'd make runs; we were very pumped up the whole game."
This time, however, Tufts was the victim of a comeback push as UMass scored six of the last seven points to earn a 15-12 win and sink Tufts' season.
"I think we were all a little physically tired, a little mentally tired and a little emotionally tired," Spies said. "We made a few errors that cost us in the end."
Despite the outcome, the E-Men were proud of the way they finished, playing what some considered their best games of the season.
"It was definitely emotional for all of us, especially the seniors, since it was their last game," Phannenstill said. "But our captain said that it was probably the best ultimate we'd played in the four years he'd been at school."
"I will never forget the two games against BU and Dartmouth," Spies said. "We showed so much heart in those two games to battle back and earn those two victories. Those were some of the best games I've ever played in. I'll never forget this team for the kind of heart that they showed at Regionals."
