Two things were not lacking in Saturday's NESCAC field hockey battle between the No. 6 Jumbos and No. 10 Middlebury Panthers: talent and drama.
The game began with a scoreless first half with both teams looking hungry, skilled and very evenly matched. After the half, it took Tufts just two minutes and 37 seconds to break the seal on the season, as junior midfielder-turned-forward Kelsey Perkins deflected a feed from senior defender Sarah Cannon into the top of the net after junior midfielder LiaSagerman earned a penalty corner. However, that was the first and only time Tufts could capitalize on its corner plays and, with an advantage in the category of 18-8, was arguably their downfall.
Middlebury junior Lauren Greer answered the goal less than 10 minutes later, and with that strike, the Panthers took a firm hold on the game's momentum. They beat senior goalkeeper Marianna Zak one more time to go up 2-1 with 13:44 to play.
Tufts was visibly down, but refused to give up.
The Jumbos screamed their catchphrase, "two minutes," trying to remind each other that most goals in any sport are scored within two minutes of the final whistle, while the crowd urged them to pick their heads up. Though the defense stood strong, the offense couldn't connect, and, as time wound down, Middlebury coach Katharine DeLorenzo called a time out to undoubtedly tell the Panthers to stall. Their excited cheer as the huddle broke, however, only seemed to ignite the Jumbos with a desire to come back that had been absent for not only the last 20 minutes of the game, but also in seasons past.
Tufts wasn't going to allow Middlebury to dribble into a corner, and even as the front line attacked, it seemed the Panthers had expected the Jumbos to lie down and accept their fate. The final seconds ticked off the clock as the ball bobbled on the goal line in front of a horizontal senior goalie Becca Shaw. Sagerman found an opening to freshman forward Brittany Norfleet, who batted it behind Shaw as Middlebury stared in disbelief. The game was going to overtime.
"We focus on retaining composure after a goal," Zak said. "We did a good job of staying in it until the end. We never gave up and we were able to capitalize."
The first extra minutes showed that Tufts had taken back the momentum.
The Jumbos earned four corners and seven shots, and Zak was forced to make only one save in the first overtime. But on arguably the most promising offensive drive of the extra period, senior co-captain Lindsay Griffith went down with a debilitating calf injury at the top of the circle. The Jumbos didn't lack the depth to fill the void, but it became all too clear that early-season fatigue was starting to set in team-wide.
"We adapted well with a lot of subbing and we are lucky to have the depth to fill the void," Zak said. "After 80-plus minutes all of us were starting to feel the fatigue, but we got a lot of people in and out and were able to hold on…seven on seven is so physically demanding."
Middlebury was reinvigorated by the exit of Griffith, who had been orchestrating much of Tufts' offense from the midfield for most of the game. The Panthers then took over in the second overtime.
The Jumbos' seven-man system is an infamously risky one with the team heavily relying on senior co-captain defender Taylor Dyer and Zak to thwart any man-up attacks, and almost too many times, Middlebury tested the formation late in the game. As the Panthers racked up four corners and 12 shots in the second overtime, Zak and Dyer stood strong. In a two-on-one with the dangerous Greer, Zak made what would've been the play of the game had the tying goal not come in such exciting fashion. Greer charged the goal at full speed and as Zak slid to meet her, it looked as if she had dived too early. But, Zak swiped the ball from Greer's stick as she crashed to the ground. If saves counted as points, Zak would've won the game right there.
And later, Dyer would've won it in the post position. On three of Middlebury's late corners, shots blew past Zak only to meet Dyer's stick and carom away from danger. But only goals count as points, and the buzzer sounded on an exhausted group of women deadlocked at 2-2.
"It fires me up knowing that my coaches and my teammates trust me and the defense," Zak said. "We knew we could get the job done and it feels good to know our overtime play gives the offense man-up opportunities."
Penalty strokes began with Dyer rocketing one into the post. Greer answered with a perfect take, and her next two teammates followed suit, while Shaw saved Tufts' next two attempts. It was a truly anticlimactic and inappropriate ending to an instant NESCAC classic.
There are worse ways to lose than in penalty strokes to another top 10 team. Tufts was able to identify its own weaknesses while receiving inspiring individual performances. It was clear confusion on the ever-changing forward line that prohibited the Jumbos from finding a groove, and fitness came into play late as more and more substitutions became a necessary evil. Then, there are those 17 scoreless corners.
"We all worked really well together," sophomore midfielder Emily Cannon said. "We were able to find each other and connect with passes. We were able to find where everyone works well together and that's something we will continue to work on. We're going to keep improving on all different aspects of the game, including the things we're already good at."
And while there are always a lot of mistakes to point to after a season opener, the Jumbos retain the team-wide confidence that is vital for a championship run.
On Tuesday, Tufts will welcome Babson for a non-league match, which will hopefully help the team rebound from its heartbreak.
"We're just looking forward to playing hard and playing our game," Cannon said. "We're not going to dwell too much."
"Babson is always a strong team," Zak said. "We've always had a close game with them in the past so we want to get out there and make a statement."
