Field Hockey: While they fell short of last season's 10-6 mark and first-round NESCAC tournament win, the Jumbos continue to make progress under second-year coach Tina McDavitt. The team was never able to put together more than two wins in a row and hovered around .500 all season, finally ending at 8-7 (5-4 NESCAC) with a 1-0 loss in the first round of the conference tournament.
The team graduates two senior midfielders, co-captains Lea Napolitano and Jeanne Grabowski, but returns leading scorer sophomore Ileana Katz, and several freshmen who turned in breakout seasons.
Football: After jumping out to an impressive 2-0 start to the season, the Jumbos fell flat, losing their final six games to stumble into eighth place in the league.
The team showed glimmers of hope, with close games against Middlebury and national powerhouse Trinity, but its inability to put consistent points on the board made 2005 an unsalvageable season. The Jumbos finished among the lowest in the league in almost all offensive statistical categories, while the defense finished just above average.
Among 12 graduating seniors are quarterback Casey D'Annolfo and running back Scott Lombardi, whose 76.9 yards per game dwarfed the team's next-best rusher.
Men's Soccer: For the third straight year, the men's soccer team's season ended with a one-goal loss at Middlebury. The season ended with a disappointing 5-8-2 clip (4-5 NESCAC), marked by five one-goal losses. In three of those, Tufts coughed up second-half leads.
Junior striker Mattia Chason found his offensive game in 2005, tallying nine goals and adding two assists for 20 points, joining senior tri-captain Mike Guigli (four goals) and sophomore Greg O'Connell (three goals) on the All-NESCAC Second Team.
Women's Soccer: A perfect homestand and a school-record 10-game winning streak culminated in a magical run through the NCAA Tournament, in which the Jumbos drove all the way to the Final Four.
The team finished 15-4-2 (6-2-1 NESCAC) and while the season was devoid of a conference or national title, the Jumbos exceeded all expectations, staging one of the greatest Tufts athletic seasons in the past decade.
Senior tri-captain Ariel Samuelson led the league in goals and was named NESCAC Player of the Year and a First Team All-American. Sophomore midfielder Martha Furtek joined Samuelson on the All-NESCAC First Team, while senior midfielder Lydia Claudio and sophomore defender Joelle Emery garnered Second Team selections. Tufts coach Martha Whiting earned NESCAC Coach of the Year honors.
Volleyball: Despite thrice running up against a Colby team that couldn't lose, Tufts' 29-7 season included a NESCAC title game and an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament, its first since 1996.
Senior co-captains Courtney Evans and April Gerry saved their best seasons for last, earning selections to the All-NESCAC First Team. The program will remain in capable hands, as freshman Caitlin Dealy earned a Second Team NESCAC Selection abd classmates, freshman Kaitlin O'Reilly and Natalie Goldstein, each earned recognition the All-New England Regional Team.
Men's Cross Country: The Jumbos made a trip to Nationals as a team for the seventh time in the past eight seasons, turning in their highest-ever fifth-place finish. With interim coach Ethan Barron taking over for 21-year veteran Connie Putnam, senior captains Matt Lacey and Matt Fortin led the Jumbos to the NESCAC and New England Regional title for the third straight season.
The team dominated at NESCACs, winning by 56 points over second-place Wesleyan. The team went on to Nationals to take fifth as Kennedy earned his second straight All-American honor.
Women's Cross Country: The Jumbos sent a full team to Nationals for the first time since 1999. The Jumbos matched a fifth place finish at NESCACs, where Ades and Beck earned All-NESCAC honors, with a fifth-place finish at the Div. III New England Regional Championship, where four runners earned All-Region.
Unfortunately, the team could not turn in the same caliber performance at Nationals, placing 22nd out of 24 teams. But with just Ades graduating, the Jumbos are gearing up to redeem themselves in the fall.
Golf: In a season highlight by a first-pace finish in Colby's Sid Farr Invitational in September, the Jumbos rode the wave of that triumph all the way to a fifth-place finish at the NESCAC Championships in October, 24 strokes behind five-time league champion Williams. Junior tri-captain Justin Meier was among Tufts' top two scorers in all but one of the team's tournaments. Senior tri-captain Seb Gonzalez, junior tri-captain Matt Linde, and sophomore David Hunt were all among the Jumbos' most consistent performers throughout the 2005 campaign as well.
