Its season might have ended in the first round of the NESCAC Tournament on Sunday, but for the men's soccer team, the early exit couldn't dull a fall campaign that witnessed a lot of progress.
On one hand, Tufts could be considered a team whose poor performance in conference road games forced it to fight for its postseason life. On the other, this year's young Jumbo squad, in the midst of a rebuilding year, performed much better than its 2007 incarnation, which relied on eight seniors but only managed to go 5-8-1 overall and 2-6-1 in the NESCAC, missing the postseason entirely. This season saw Tufts finish 8-6-1 overall and 4-5 in conference, a marked improvement from last autumn's showing.
With just two seniors returning this season, starting goalkeeper and tri-captain David McKeon and defender-turned-midfielder and tri-captain Peter DeGregorio, the Jumbos were forced to rely on a number of underclassmen to lead them through the perennially difficult NESCAC, home of last year's national champion Middlebury. Freshman midfielders Pat Doherty, Matt Blumenthal and David Orlowitz all saw extended time throughout the year, along with first-year defender Rafael Ramos-Meyer, who started all 15 games this season.
"The season was, in my mind, successful," DeGregorio said. "We faced a lot of adversity -- we graduated seven or eight starters from last year -- and we were able to win some pretty big games this year, and I consider that a success."
After 2-0 tune-up wins at Gordon and Southern Maine to begin the year, Tufts started its conference slate at home against Colby. After tying the game at one on a goal from sophomore midfielder Ron Coleman, another major underclassman contributor, the Jumbos allowed the Mules to score with less than 10 seconds left in double overtime. Tufts followed this heartbreaking loss with a 0-0 draw at New England College, the first scoreless tie the Jumbos had played in since a 1999 match against Bates.
"We didn't attack with as much creativity or gusto as we could have," said sophomore forward Alex Lach, who started all 14 games in which he played. "That maybe allowed our opponents to get in a rhythm offensively. Other than that, [not] coming up with big plays and big situations, like the Colby game -- giving up that goal with six seconds left. We missed a couple of big opportunities during the year."
These early season results hinted at the Jumbos' Achilles' heel of the 2008 campaign: a lack of consistent scoring, especially on the road. After home wins over Conn. College and non-conference foe Springfield, Tufts dropped its rain-marred Homecoming contest versus Bates 2-0. A week later, the Jumbos were bageled again, falling to traditional power Amherst 3-0.
While the squad certainly struggled to score at times, it also displayed great resilience throughout the entire year. After those two NESCAC shutouts, the Jumbos took out their frustrations on overmatched Plymouth State, 4-1. Tufts notched goals from four different players during the game, including junior forward Dan Schoening, who ended up with a team-leading eight scores on the season. Coleman finished second on the team with three tallies, while fellow sophomore Lach led the Jumbos with four total assists.
After being shut out at Middlebury 2-0, Tufts found itself toward the bottom of the NESCAC standings and fighting for one of the league's eight playoff spots. But the Jumbos once again bounced back, earning consecutive home victories over conference rivals Williams and Wesleyan. The victory over Williams ended the Jumbos' 13-game losing streak against the Ephs.
"Beating Williams was definitely a high point," said DeGregorio, who tallied an assist in the victory.
The Wesleyan win was also impressive in its own right, as the Jumbos overcame a 1-0 halftime deficit to down the Cardinals.
Demonstrating their continued inconsistency at keeping momentum, the Jumbos were victims of another road shutout, this time at the hands of Trinity, who topped Tufts 1-0 in overtime. The loss set up a regular season finale at Bowdoin that was essentially a do-or-die situation in terms of playoff eligibility for Tufts. The Jumbos were up to the task, coming up with a clutch win in Maine on Halloween to clinch the sixth seed in the NESCAC Tournament.
"We did a lot of things that we wanted to accomplish," Lach said. "We made the NESCAC Tournament, which we didn't do last year, so at least in that regard we improved. We had a couple of wins, like the Wesleyan win, coming back at halftime, and the Bowdoin game, where we really grew as a team."
A spirited postseason run was not in the cards, however, as Tufts bowed out in the first round with a 2-0 loss to Trinity on Sunday. Still, the team is confident that the progress it made this year will translate into success in 2009.
"We have high expectations for next year," Lach said. "We started a bunch of sophomores this year, some freshmen. We're only losing two seniors -- granted, they're both huge parts of our team -- but we're definitely looking forward to next season. We want to go further in the tournament and hopefully make the NCAAs."
DeGregorio, one of the two departing seniors, is confident that the young Jumbos will come into their own.
"I think the team has a great chance to be successful in the future," he said. "Just like any team with potential, it depends on what they do with it. And if they work hard and stay focused, they're going to have a great season next year."
