For the women's lacrosse team, the 2008 season begins with putting the past behind them and preparing a clean slate for a new campaign.
Last season, the Jumbos finished with a .500 record of 7-7, going 3-6 in the NESCAC. This year, the team looks to take strides forward toward a winning season and a run at a NESCAC title.
The 2007 campaign was characterized by narrow losses; four of the Jumbos' seven losing efforts were by one goal. This year, with the departure of seven players from its 2007 roster, the squad looks toward senior leadership and a talented group of young players to step in and fill the necessary roles.
As usual, Middlebury will be the Jumbos' toughest matchup this year. The Panthers ran the table last year in the NESCAC with a perfect 9-0 record en route to its seventh consecutive conference title. This year, the Jumbos are hoping to give Middlebury a run for its money.
"Our main goal is to improve on last season and to do well in the NESCAC Tournament," senior co-captain Alyssa Corbett said.
Corbett was fifth on the team in total points last season with 13 goals and 18 assists and will be complemented in the midfield by sophomore Jenna Abelli, a fearsome midfielder with great ability to finish around the net. Abelli finished her freshman season fourth on the team in scoring with 29 goals and two assists, and she will play a crucial role in the Jumbos' offense this year alongside Corbett.
The team has been working hard in practice with a smaller roster than last year, but the Jumbos see this as an opportunity rather than a problem; fewer players on the sideline during practice allows for more efficient practice time and more experience for the young players.
"We look at it as an advantage," sophomore defender Kate Neuhaus said, referring to the downsized roster this season. "Everyone is getting a lot of practice and each player is working on the basics to help strengthen our settled game."
"We're working a lot on our settled attack and concentrating on making our offense more organized," Corbett added.
Honing its offense will help Tufts finish on top in the one-goal games that are bound to come about in such a competitive conference like the NESCAC. The Jumbos averaged 12.8 goals per game last year, while only surrendering just over nine goals on average. And with four out of the top five scorers from last year's team returning, the squad looks for another year of stellar offensive production from its key players.
On the defensive end, Tufts is working day in and day out to improve from last year.
"We became a second half team last year," Corbett said. "We would find ourselves down big at halftime and we would outplay the other teams in the second half, but sometimes it wasn't enough."
Seniors and returning starters Katie Frisina and Sarah Bromley anchor the defense as they will lead a group comprised mostly of sophomores and freshman. Frisina and Bromley's game experience will be a critical asset to the Jumbos' defense as a whole. The Jumbos' defense will implement a new overall strategy this season as well, implanting a zone defensive scheme that aims to neutralize one-on-one match-ups and force other teams to work the ball more efficiently for open shots.
Last season, Tufts finished eighth in the NESCAC with a 3-6 in conference record. Aside from Middlebury's perfect 9-0 record, the rest of the league played fairly even as no other team tallied more than six conference wins.
The Jumbos were two wins away from tying for third in the league, and if they can turn just two or three of those one-goal losses into victories, Tufts could make a serious run at the league title.
The Jumbos are currently No. 20 in the preseason Div. III coaches' poll. Their quest to improve on last year and to set the tone for a championship season starts tomorrow as they travel to Wellesley.
