Sophomore defender Amanda Roberts couldn't have picked a better time to score her first collegiate goal.
With the field hockey team trailing 1-0 in the second half of its NCAA quarterfinal showdown against The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) yesterday afternoon on Bello Field, the least likely of suspects stepped up for the Jumbos.
With 29:52 remaining in regulation, Roberts intercepted a clearing attempt near midfield and took the ball toward the goal, firing a blast into the lower left corner of the cage that beat TCNJ freshman keeper Shannon Syciarz and tied the game at 1-1. The tally was Roberts' first goal in her nearly two seasons in a Jumbo uniform.
The goal instantly resuscitated a Jumbo offense that had been stagnant to that point.
Twenty-eight minutes later, senior tri-captain Brittany Holiday put Tufts ahead to stay, converting her fourth penalty-stroke attempt of the season and sending the team to the Final Four for the first time in program history. Roberts set the stage for those heroics, showcasing the offensive potential she has displayed all season long.
"She's just incredible," coach Tina McDavitt said. "It's become kind of a joke on the team because she hasn't scored, so we've been giving her a hard time about it. In the big games, she'd have a great ball that'd look like it's going in and then someone else would tip it in and she'd get the assist. She goes, 'I know you guys were laughing at me when I scored.' She's an awesome player. She's just a fantastic all-around player and a great athlete. It was quite a good game for her to step up and get it done."
In her breakout 2008 campaign, Roberts has thus far made her mark as a top-flight defender, having started 18 of the team's 19 games in the team's midfield after earning just one start in her rookie season last year. Six months after earning All-NESCAC honors in lacrosse, Roberts garnered the same distinction for the field hockey squad.
Her superior defensive play has complemented the Jumbos' potent offensive assault this season, led by the team's forwards: sophomore Tamara Brown and juniors Michelle Kelly and Amanda Russo. But when the forward line was held in check yesterday, Roberts picked up the slack, continuing a string of strong offensive efforts.
Most notably, in the team's dramatic regular-season road victory over Trinity on Oct. 25, Roberts assisted on both of Brown's tallies, including the game-winner in overtime, to help the then-unbeaten Jumbos pick up their second of three road wins over top-10 teams. For the season, Roberts is fifth on the team with five assists to go along with 26 shots.
With the victory, Tufts' historic season lives to see another day, and the squad now sits just two wins away from a national championship.
"There are no words to describe this," Roberts said. "We've come so far in one year, and the program just keeps building ... It's a really good feeling."
Sapna Bansil contributed reporting to this article.
