For a moment, it looked like the men's soccer team was on the verge of a monumental upset that would have marked its first NESCAC victory and possibly salvage what has largely been a lost season. But in the span of seven minutes, those dreams were dashed by a barrage of goals from the nationally ranked No. 18 Williams Ephs.
Clinging to a 1-0 lead in the 65th minute of play, Tufts surrendered three unanswered goals to the now 11-1-1 (6-1-1 NESCAC) Williams Ephs to fall 3-1. The loss drops the Jumbos to 2-9-2 overall, with a 0-7-1 conference record.
Heavy rain water-logged Williams' field and prevented clean play from both teams on both sides of the ball. Tufts, playing with the one goal lead, stayed strong 20 minutes into the second half until defensive tragedy struck. The Eph offense, possibly getting comfortable in the rain late in the game, tied the score on a one-timed shot by senior forward Perre Meloty-Kapella at 64:40 off a bending end-line pass from junior forward Gaston Kelly.
Only 47 seconds later, junior midfielder Colin Ainsworth connected with junior forward Charles Romero, who made his mark on a disorganized Jumbo defense to take the lead. The hope for a Jumbo recovery was all but lost with a third Eph goal coming from sophomore midfielder Nick Pugliese off a heel pass from Romero just six minutes later.
"It looked like we were going to win because we held them for a good part of the second half, and then they just put in three goals," sophomore defender Jesse Poon said. "It was heartbreaking. It was just a 10 minute span where we broke down defensively. The first goal killed our momentum and with the second goal right after, we couldn't get it back. The third was the dagger."
Tufts had taken the lead early in the game after taking advantage of its only shot on goal of the day in the 19th minute of play. Williams first-year goalkeeper Than Finan let a simple pop-up slip through his soaked gloves and freshman Kevin Maxham, called up from the junior varsity squad earlier in the season, pounced on the error and recorded his first collegiate goal off a quick assist from sophomore attacker Matt Blumenthal.
The Jumbos would carry the lead into the second half after facing fourteen misfires from the Eph attack, which was seemingly rattled by the weather conditions. Tufts' senior goalie Pat Tonelli only had to make three saves in the first frame, compared to seven in the second.
At the end of the game, the Jumbos left the field muddy and disappointed. They tallied only five shots — all before halftime — and one corner, while their opponents racked up 31 shots (13 on goal) and 10 corners. Finan and senior Andrew Graham split time in goal for Williams and neither made a save.
"I think that if we get a lead and we play to win instead of playing not to lose, we have a better shot," Poon said. "We didn't have many offensive chances in the second half and that left us stuck in a defensive position."
"We played well in the first half, and we were taking it to them for most of the time in the second half, but we just took our foot off the pedal so to speak," sophomore Stratos Saropoulos added. "They just finished on their chances, and we missed ours."
Still, hope is a common thread among the Jumbos. Citing the obvious difficulties presented by the rain and the inexperience of several players, the Jumbos know the game was not played to their full potential.
"We had five JV guys pulled up, and we still challenged one of the best teams in the country," Saropoulos said. "Our back four, with Jesse and [freshman] Mike Walker in his second varsity game, haven't had as much playing time, and they did a really good job. And with the conditions it was good that we were taking chances offensively."
On Friday, the Jumbos will see their final opportunity for a NESCAC win against sixth-place Bowdoin, which is 9-3-1 overall and 4-3-1 conference record. Consistency will be the biggest factor as Tufts tries to send off the class of 2010 on a high note. The Jumbos will have to sustain their offensive intensity for the full 90 minutes while preventing defensive breakdowns like Saturday's brief unraveling.
"The most important thing in terms of the spirit of our team is that we want to win, especially to send our seniors off playing well," Saropoulos said. "I think we've proven that we can play with the best, and if we play to our potential, there's no reason we can't beat Bowdoin."
