While most of the campus looks ahead to spring as an escape from winter's icy grip and bitter cold, Jumbo spring athletes await the season's arrival, anticipating the beginning of outdoor practices and scrimmages in preparation for the imminent season.
Last year's performances ranged from NCAA Tournament appearances to some less-than-stellar spurts. Here's a glimpse at what the spring athletics season has to offer.
Baseball: After putting up a second-consecutive 20-plus win season, coach John Casey's baseball team looks to advance to the NCAA postseason after narrowly missing an at-large bid. The squad posted a 24-14 record (9-3 NESCAC East) last year, falling in the conference title game to Middlebury - the thorn in the Jumbos' sides throughout the season-which prevented them from grabbing an automatic bid to NCAAs.
With five seniors graduated from last year's roster, the team will look to senior tri-captain Bryan McDavitt for leadership on the offensive end. McDavitt finished second in batting average (.420), slugging percentage (.609), and home runs (4) on the team last year, while leading in RBI (38).
Softball: The future looks bright for the softball team, which won two games at last season's NCAA Tournament, finishing 28-16 overall with a near-perfect 9-1 NESCAC East record. Coach Cheryl Milligan's squad finished with a NESCAC-best team batting average of .318. The Jumbos are eyeing this year's conference title, which they narrowly lost to the Williams Ephs last year.
Anchoring the lineup on offense is junior Danielle Lopez, who led the team with a .383 batting average and 11 homeruns, while breaking Tufts school records in hits (54), RBI (48), total bases (99) and runs (43). Her accomplishments netted her NESCAC Player of the Year honors at the end of the season. With only three seniors having graduated, this team brings a lot of experience back to the field this season.
Men's Lacrosse: The men's lacrosse team hopes to rebound from an inconsistent season which saw the Jumbos catapult to a 6-1 record before finishing 11-6 overall and 5-4 in the NESCAC, including a tough 12-11 season finale loss in the NESCAC semifinals to Middlebury. The squad still managed to finish in the nation's Top 20 for the fourth-consecutive season.
On offense, the squad will look to senior Mark Warner and sophomore Clem McNally, who finished with 31 and 25 points, respectively. Warner completed the season tied for first in points and led the team with 20 assists, while McNally finished first in goals with 21. Sophomore Matt Harrigan will start in goal after posting posted 11.76 saves per game and a .595 save percentage, last season, good for second and third in the league, respectively.
Women's Lacrosse: After finishing last season 10-5 overall and 5-4 in the league, concluding the year with a NESCAC first-round loss to Bowdoin, the women's lacrosse team has room for improvement entering this spring season. After starting off hot with a 6-0 record, the Jumbos dropped five of their last nine games to end the season; however, the team had to face-off against six top 10 teams.
The Jumbos will need to fill the void left by Dena Miller (LA '06), who led the team in goals and points, with 39 and 53, respectively. Still, the team only lost two players to graduation, returning a squad armed with experienced players, including senior Lauren Murphy, junior Alyssa Corbett, sophomore Maya Shoham and junior Sarah Williams, who finished last season as the second through fifth in points respectively, collectively averaging 31.75.
Men's Tennis: For the men's tennis team, the only place to really look is up. The squad finished 6-9 last season, failing to qualify for the NESCAC Tournament for the first time since 2000, when the tournament was first created. But the team did manage to record four victories over Top 25 teams last year.
The fall portion of the season went well for the Jumbos, who are 2-0 heading into the spring. The squad will be infused with the return of senior tri-captain Sean McCooey, who missed the first half of the season due to injury. McCooey is 34-16 overall in his singles career at Tufts.
Women's Tennis: Last season saw the women's tennis team fall to Bowdoin three times, including narrow losses to the Polar Bears in the first rounds of both the NESCAC Tournament and the NCAA regional tourney. With a lot to prove this season, the Jumbos return all members, save Becky Bram (E '06).
The squad has started off hot, winning all four of its dual matches in the fall to head into the spring an undefeated 4-0 team. Senior tri-captains Jen Luten and Kylyn Deary anchor the squad's singles and doubles lineup, with Luten posting a 52-18 career singles record, while Deary is 42-18. When teamed-up for doubles, the duo are 28-15 for their careers.
Men's Outdoor Track and Field: The men's track team notched impressive results last season, including second-place finishes at both the NESCAC Championships and the New England Div. III Championships, not to mention a tie for 20th at the NCAA Championships. Led by senior tri-captain Fred Jones, who was National Champion in the triple jump last year, the Jumbos sport a promising lineup that includes senior tri-captain Nate Cleveland and juniors Dan Marcy and Jeremy Arak.
Women's Outdoor Track and Field: Expect the junior duo of Cat Beck and Katy O'Brien to be at it again this spring. Both are masters of the 1,500 meter run, with Beck finishing as 2006 New England Open Champion in the event last year. On the whole, the squad took second at the NESCAC Championships, fourth at New England Div. III Championships and 11th at the New England Open Championships, before finishing tied for 28th at the NCAA Championships. With Beck and O'Brien at the helm, the women's track team should be up to the challenge of this spring's tough New England competition.
