Women's Soccer: Tufts, Williams separate themselves from the pack
Expect fireworks in the near future, as the NESCAC women's soccer season is winding down with some exciting showdowns sure to come.
So far, two teams in particular have broken away from the pack, as Tufts and Williams both boast untainted 6-0 conference records. Behind them, no team has more than three wins, making for a tight race to fill out the rest of the tournament field, espeically the top half of the bracket, which will receive home-field advantage in the first round.
"Every team is in contention this year," Williams head coach Michelyne Pinard said. "Colby and Bates were in the semifinals last year and they are struggling so far this year, which is a testament to how good the league is. Different teams are coming on strong, like Trinity, Conn. College and Wesleyan. Every team is dangerous, and I would say the league is as good as ever."
With four teams
knotted at three wins apiece and only three weekends left in the NESCAC regular season, all eyes will be on Amherst, Middlebury, Trinity and Bowdoin, as they duke it out for the third through
seventh spots behind Tufts and Williams. Trinity certainly has a tough road ahead, as it will face off against Tufts tomorrow, Bowdoin on Oct. 20, and Middlebury on Oct. 27.
"We have had a good year, but the NESCAC as a league is one where on any given day any team can win," Pinard said. "We work so hard because we have no idea how it all will end. We show up every day and give it our all and just hope for the best."
As far as the two powerhouses go, Tufts and Williams meet on Oct. 20 in Williamstown. If both squads win this weekend, it will be a battle of the unbeatens.
-by Tim Judson
Men's soccer: Everyone's chasing the Lord Jeffs
With less than three weeks left in the NESCAC regular season, the Amherst Lord Jeffs currently stand atop the NESCAC. The Jeffs have dominated the conference virtually all season, posting nine overall wins to remain undefeated.
Amherst's defensive side has proven unstoppable, as the team has allowed more than one goal in just one contest this season. Perhaps more importantly, junior goalie Jeff Grover has controlled play in front of the net, registering a remarkable four shutouts on the year, including one against the Jumbos in Medford.
"Our defense has been good," Amherst coach Justin Serpone said. "That's a testament to the four guys that are back there working hard in practice every day. In soccer you have to be tuned in for all 90 minutes. One
letdown here, one letdown there, and you can give up goals. The concentration has been very good."
Despite the Lord Jeffs' success, Serpone attributes his team's winning ways to an abundance of lucky bounces. Serpone believes that the NESCAC is just as competitive as it has ever been, and in the last portion of the season, any game could go either way.
"I think we've been very lucky," he said. "I don't think we're the best team in the league. I literally believe in my heart that the difference [in the NESCAC] is so slim from the top to the bottom."
Indeed, several upcoming games ought to excite the league's soccer junkies. Tomorrow, two teams tied for second place will face off when Williams visits Middlebury and seventh-place Tufts will seek a much-needed against fourth-place Trinity in Medford.
-by Jeremy Strauss
Volleyball: Jeffs poised to defend claim to first place this weekend
Round-robins start today at Amherst and Middlebury that will begin to clear up a muddled postseason picture in NESCAC volleyball.
Amherst, the defending conference champion. is in first place after a 4-0 start in NESCAC play, but the next five days will present its most challenging tests of the season. On the Jeffs' plate are emerging powers Wesleyan and Conn. College and a matchup with second-place Williams on Tuesday.
Conn. College, which won a match in the NESCAC Tournament for the first time in program history last season, scored an impressive win over a big-hitting Wesleyan team on Oct. 3. But with matches against Amherst, Tufts and Williams still on the docket, the Camels will be faced with more challenges to prove they are ready to contend with the conference's perennial heavyweights.
"The rest of our schedule from here on out, especially in NESCAC play, is going to be a battle for us," Conn. College coach Joshua Edmed said. "This year, we're stronger than we have been any other year. But I do feel that the next five NESCAC matches will all be tough tests."
Wesleyan, which burst onto the scene last year with a 19-win season and a 7-3 conference record, is very much in contention for the conference's top record with a 4-1 NESCAC mark. The Cardinals can help close in on the first-place Jeffs when the two teams square off at Amherst tonight. Conn. College's and Wesleyan's success this season is indicative of the strength of the conference, which now runs deeper than its traditional contenders.
"You look at [the NESCAC] one through 11," Edmed said. "On any given day, whoever happens to be in 11th place at this point could easily compete with the team in the No. 1 position ... There's a lot of youth in the conference, and it's just going to continue to be deeper and more competitive."
-by Sapna Bansil
Field Hockey: Bowdoin looks uncatchable, but four teams play this weekend for prime playoff position
It seems unlikely that anyone will catch Bowdoin, which has rolled to a 6-0 league record and a No. 1 national ranking this year. With a fairly light remaining conference schedule, Bowdoin has all but locked up the top seed in the NESCAC Tournament and the hosting rights that go with it.
But this weekend holds some interesting matchups for the teams on the Polar Bears' heels. With Trinity, Middlebury and Williams tied for second at 4-2 and Tufts a half-game back at 3-2, the two NESCAC games tomorrow between the four will shake out the standings. Trinity plays at Tufts and Williams plays at Middlebury.
At tomorrow's end, at least one of those squads will be 5-2, and with a few lucky breaks, will have locked up second place. It won't be Tufts; because the Jumbos have played one fewer NESCAC game than the other three; the best they can emerge with is a 4-2 record and sole ownership of third place. A loss to the Bantams will send them to 3-3 in the league and likely fifth place.
Because of their respective losses to Tufts and Trinity, Middlebury and Williams have the furthest to fall this weekend. A combination of a Tufts win and a Middlebury loss will send the Panthers to 4-3 and fourth place, while a Williams loss and a Trinity win will do the same to the Ephs.
Four of the past five meetings between Middlebury and Williams have been decided in overtime. The Panthers have lost just twice all season, once to the Jumbos and once to Bowdoin. Williams won its first five games before running into Bowdoin and Springfield, both nationally ranked, and an upset-minded Trinity, but have rebounded well to 8-3.
Trinity comes to Tufts in a rematch of the NESCAC Tournament opening-round game that sent the Jumbos to the semis. The two teams split a pair of 2-1 decisions last year, and will be playing as much for late-season standingss as for validation of their wins over the other two historical heavyweights.
-by Liz Hoffman
