The field hockey team didn't look quite as perfect as its record in its contest over the weekend.
Nationally ranked No. 3 Tufts had to come from behind against NESCAC bottom-feeder Wesleyan before registering a 3-1 win Saturday afternoon in Middletown, Conn. With the victory, the Jumbos improved to 5-0 on the season and kept pace with Trinity and Williams atop the conference standings.
This year's meeting between the two teams unfolded nothing like Tufts' 10-1 drubbing of Wesleyan a year ago. Entering Saturday's contest with 14 losses in their last 15 NESCAC games, the Cardinals jumped out to an early 1-0 advantage. The Jumbos did regroup thanks to first-half scores from senior forward Michelle Kelly and junior forward Tamara Brown, but the team carried only a slim 2-1 lead into halftime, as it was unable to fully capitalize on an 18-3 edge in shots and a 9-1 advantage in corners up to that point.
"They were a definitely a stronger team this year, and that's what happens with the NESCAC — it's really any given day," junior defender Amanda Roberts said. "Last year, we came out and had a lot of opportunities and capitalized on them. This year, we dominated a lot of the game and didn't put as many goals in, but Wesleyan had a much stronger team than they've had in years past.
"They put up a good fight," she continued. "Whether it's 10-1 or 3-1, we're just going to say a win's a win."
The first half was microcosmic of the Jumbos' season in which they have had very little to show for their dominance in pace and possession. Though Tufts has outshot its opponents a whopping 141-28, four of the team's five contests have been decided by two goals or fewer. A squad that led the NESCAC with 3.90 goals per game in 2008 has found the back of the cage only 14 times through its first five games of this season.
"We definitely have been getting a lot of shots, and we still need to work on capitalizing on all those shots, but their goalie made a ton of great saves [on Saturday,]" senior co-captain Amanda Russo said. "They also packed the circle with a lot of defenders, so it was difficult to get a good shot off because we had a lot less time. It's just something we still need to work on."
"We're just having some trouble putting it in the net, but it'll come," Roberts added. "It's good that we're getting shots off — that's kind of the first step. The next step is to get them in, and that will come as we practice and play more games in the season."
Despite having six penalty corner chances in the second half, Wesleyan was unable to mount much of a threat to tie the game, managing just two shots on goal over the final 35 minutes. Instead, Russo clinched the Tufts victory with an insurance goal in the 58th minute.
Russo's tally was the culmination of a series of strong performances by the Jumbos' forwards. Amongst the team's top scorers in each of the last three years, Kelly recorded her first goal of the season to get Tufts on the board in the first half. Junior Melissa Burke also aided the winning cause with two assists.
The Jumbos are off until Thursday, when they'll begin a stretch of three games in six days with a matchup against non-conference foe Endicott. Tufts will then hit the road for contests against Bates and Wellesley, two squads that are a combined 0-7 record versus NESCAC opponents this season.
"I wouldn't call these teams a lull in our schedule — they're all quite good, and Wellesley has played us tough in the last couple years." Russo said. "But we still have a lot of things to work on, and this is a perfect opportunity to really refine whatever we're doing and make ourselves that much better."
"No judgment can be passed on the teams we're playing now," Roberts added. "I think the results of the next couple games will really dictate how well the end of the season goes for us."
