Men's Basketball
The men's basketball team enjoyed early success this winter but ultimately was unable to have the season the players and coaches had hoped for. The squad rode an early five-game winning streak to open the year at 6-2, with one of the two losses coming in an 89-87 battle with eventual Elite Eight team Brandeis. After entering conference play at 9-4, the Jumbos posted a 1-8 record in the NESCAC and missed out on postseason play. Four of the team's eight in-conference losses came by five points or less.Tufts was led by junior Second Team All-NESCAC forward Jon Pierce, who averaged 21.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Pierce easily led the NESCAC in scoring, and he also finished second in scoring in in-conference games, averaging 18 points against NESCAC opponents.
Tri-captain forward Jake Weitzen posted an impressive senior season, averaging 14 points and 5.5 boards per game. Senior point guard Jeremy Black, junior shooting guard Aaron Gallant and senior tri-captain Ryan O'Keefe were also major contributors.
Tufts' most impressive win of the year was a 93-68 blowout of Williams on Senior Day, a fitting cap to solid careers for Weitzen, Black, O'Keefe, senior forwards Pat Sullivan and Aaron Harris and graduate tri-captain Ross Trethewey.
Fencing
It was an experience-building season for the women's fencing team this year. After the Jumbos graduated two seniors last season and lost all but one current junior to study abroad, the young team spent considerable time training new freshman fencers to fill its roster.The squad ended the season with a 6-16 record, a testament to the rebuilding process. While the Jumbos had little problems with traditionally weaker programs, they struggled against teams with whom they'd been well-matched in the past. However, the epee squad routinely posted respectable performances even against some of the region's strongest teams.
Freshman epeeist Coryn Wolk was certainly the breakout performer for the Jumbos this season. Wolk ended the season with a 16th-place finish at NCAA Regionals, missing the third round of competition by only one touch.
The Jumbos will lose one senior to graduation today - sabre fencer Lauren Kari, who helped the Jumbos ease into the season by fencing a few bouts in meets earlier in the year.
The Jumbos should return next season with a more experienced team of rising sophomores. The Jumbos gained valuable experience for such a young team this year and expect to witness more success next season.
Hockey
Despite capturing its first opening-weekend win in five years - courtesy of a last-minute goal against Williams on Nov. 16 - the hockey team plummeted throughout the season, finishing with a disappointing 6-17-1 record and ending up in the NESCAC cellar.Still, the season was highlighted by a come-from-behind win over Conn. College on Dec. 8 and a four-game stretch that saw the Jumbos win three contests while senior goalie James Kalec allowed seven total goals.
The run allowed Tufts to match last year's win total with still over a month remaining before ending the year on a 10-game losing skid. In the final game of his collegiate career before succumbing to an injury sustained against Bowdoin on Jan. 26, Kalec saved 34 shots to set the program's career saves mark with 2,166. He graduates today with a program-best career save percentage of .900.
Senior tri-captains Ross Gimbel and Greg O'Connell led the team in points with 19 each this season. O'Connell finishes his career with 97 total points on 68 assists and 29 goals, while Gimbel graduates with 36 goals and 42 assists for 78 career points.
Men's Squash
The men's squash team witnessed a very competitive winter season as it battled to a 10-9 overall record.After compiling a 5-4 mark from November through January, Tufts began February with the NESCAC Tournament, going in as the No. 6 seed. The Jumbos beat up on Wesleyan 8-1 in the first round before falling to the tournament's No. 2 seed Williams in the quarterfinals.
Tufts then finished out the month and the season at the College Squash Association Team Championships. The Jumbos were competing as the first seed in the Summers Division, comprised of the nation's No. 17 to No. 24 teams. Tufts downed Wesleyan and Hamilton in the opening two rounds but then lost 6-3 to St. Lawrence in the finals, giving the Jumbos their final No. 18 national ranking.
The Jumbos continued to enjoy the dominating play of senior tri-captain Jake Gross, as they have since his freshman season. Gross has played at No. 1 on the ladder for all four of his years at Tufts. This year, he shattered the school's career wins record of 43 set by Wes Baker (LA '85). Gross cruised to a 17-2 record in his senior year to finish with a 53-21 career record.
Tufts also graduates three other seniors today in tri-captains Nelson Schubart and Kris Leetavorn, as well as Jonah Peppiatt.
Women's Squash
The women's squash team had its best season in years in 2007-2008. An undefeated December included wins over Bowdoin, Middlebury and Amherst, all NESCAC rivals and top-20 teams. When the Jumbos hit a five-match win streak midseason, their goal of returning to the Howe Cup B Division seemed within reach after two seasons of drifting in the C Division.A late-season stumble put that goal in jeopardy, but the overall strength of the Jumbos' schedule gave them a No. 16 ranking over Amherst and the final spot in the B Division, which includes teams ranked from No. 9 through No. 16 in the nation.
There, the rankings held and the Jumbos lost out to No. 9 Williams, No. 12 Bowdoin and No. 15 Hamilton, securing a final season ranking of No. 16, seven places above their 2007 finish.
Senior co-captain Rebecca Rice rounded out a stellar four-year career as the Jumbos' No. 1. Her Feb. 2 win over Bates' No. 1, sophomore Hannah Laverty, the Jumbos' only victory in an 8-1 loss, was the high point of her season.
Freshman Valerie Koo was the Jumbos' sparkplug at No. 5, a key ladder position that often means the difference between a 5-4 win and a 5-4 loss. Koo went 12-9 overall and delivered several momentum-changing performances.
Rice and co-captain Micela Leis, who played in the middle of the ladder for the Jumbos, both graduate today.
Men's Swimming and Diving
Despite losing two dual meets for the first time since the 1999-2000 campaign, the men's swimming and diving team had a strong year featuring some impressive accomplishments.The season culminated with a remarkable second-place finish at NESCAC Championships, one spot above Tufts' third-place showing from last year. Though only two Jumbos placed in the top three out of 24 events, the team secured 23 finishes between fourth place and eighth. This display of depth allowed Tufts to hold off Amherst for second place.
Another of the team's highlights this year was its matchup with Div. I Boston College, whom Tufts defeated handily by a score of 191-152 on Jan. 16.
The team was led by the strong performances of sophomore diver Rob Matera, who consistently won his events week in and week out. Matera finished fourth in the NESCAC in the 1-meter dive and second in the 3-meter dive. He was the only Jumbo to qualify for Nationals, where he took 14th in both the 1- and 3-meter dives, earning him All-American honorable mentions in both events.
Women's Swimming and Diving
The women's swimming and diving team enjoyed a successful winter campaign thanks to contributions from both veteran seniors and incoming freshmen. Coach Nancy Bigelow's squad swam to a 5-3 record and a fifth-place finish at the NESCAC Championships at Wesleyan.Senior tri-captains Monika Burns, Renee Nicholas and Claire Pigula were major contributors on the swimming side, while classmate Kendall Swett dominated the field in diving. Swett took conference and national titles in both the 1- and 3-meter dives this season.
Although the squad graduates 10 seniors today, it also returns a talented group of underclassmen who delivered several strong performances throughout the course of the season.
There was no sophomore slump for Meredith Cronin, who ended this season breaking nearly all of her personal records as well as some school records on the way. Freshmen Megan Kono and Maureen O'Neill will be making waves for the Jumbos for years to come, as they have already broken Tufts records in their short time with the team, with O'Neill setting a new mark in the 50-yard freestyle and Kono breaking a pair of school records in the 1,000 and 1,650 freestyle events.
In addition, sophomore diver Lindsay Gardel picked up her second All-American nod after earning an honorable mention in the 3-meter dive at Nationals.
Men's Indoor Track and Field
For the men's track and field team, the 2008 indoor season proved to be one of the most successful in recent years. Easily the highlight of the campaign was the Jumbos' first-place finish at the New England Div. III Championships, an event that Tufts had not won since 1991, having taken second in each of the last four years.Another of the Jumbos' postseason successes came during the NCAA Championships at Ohio Northern University over spring break. Senior quad-captain Dan Marcy leaped to a second-place finish in the triple jump, while classmate and fellow quad-captain Dave Sorensen finished ninth in the mile run. As a team, Tufts took 25th overall at Nationals.
Some of the team's other notable performances came courtesy of sophomore Andrew Longley, who twice broke the school record in the 200-meter dash, first in the 2008 Valentine Invite and then again at the Open New England Championships. In addition, senior quad-captain Nate Scott broke the Tufts pentathlon record for the fourth time at the ECAC Championships.
