In a rematch of last year's 3-0 rout of Middlebury, the women's soccer team fought key injuries and two Panthers equalizers in order to preserve a 2-2 draw in the Jumbos' season- and conference-opener at Kraft Field.
In light of injuries to starting sophomore forwards Maeve Stewart and Sophie Wojtasinski, as well as senior midfielder Alix Michael, junior midfielder Alyssa Von Puttkammer and a group of first and second-year forwards and defenders stepped up to seal the tie.
Junior midfielder Jenna Castellot and sophomore back Blair Brady teamed up with freshman defender Catharine Greer and forward Emma Husted-Sherman to show off the Jumbos' depth at both ends of the field.
Coach Martha Whiting's squad started off strong and kept the pressure on for the duration of the game. In the 12th minute, Husted-Sherman knocked the ball to senior forward Jamie Love-Nichols, who planted a shot into the top-left corner as the Jumbos drew first blood.
"We came out extremely hard and we were obviously very excited for the game, and I think the best 15 minutes for us were the first 15 minutes," senior co-captain midfielder Lauren O'Connor said. "We came out with a lot of passion and we were looking to set the tone and score early on. We actually kind of got a little over-excited and frazzled after the goal going towards the half but we were able to rein it in and pull it together."
The 1-0 margin held through halftime, and Tufts continued to press, holding Middlebury scoreless until the 67th minute, when freshman midfielder Claire Nishioka sent a corner kick in from the left side. Junior midfielder Rachel Madding headed the ball past sophomore goalie Kristin Wright in order to bring the Panthers to a 1-1 tie with the host Jumbos.
Just four minutes later, Tufts stifled Middlebury's momentum with a 30-yard strike from Von Puttkammer.
But the Panthers once again responded, as Nishioka helped Madding to a second goal in the 78th minute. This time, her corner service found Madding's foot and slipped inside the post. The Panthers earned six corners to the Jumbos' three, and made more of them.
"We definitely have a plan for after we score or are scored upon to go so hard for the next five minutes so it's really indicative of our game to maintain control when we're scored upon," O'Connor said. "There's not much you can do other than just put it behind you and regain momentum. It was unfortunate that we gave up two goals off corners, but those are easy things to fix because we're young in the back and it was just a lack of organization off set pieces."
During the second half, Tufts overcame both an injury to O'Connor, who later re-entered the game, and the Panthers' threatening advances. In the final minutes, both sides fired dangerously close shots to no avail, and as the clock ticked down, the game moved to overtime.
"We always try to come out with a lot of heart and when they scored their goals we just knew we needed to prove that much more that we wanted the game," Von Puttkammer said. "It wasn't ideal for them to keep getting goals off of corner-kicks, but I think we kept up the pressure each time, showing that we had one more goal that we had to get instead of just another to top it off."
In the extra period, Tufts senior defender Laney Siegner narrowly missed a header into an empty net, instead slamming the crossbar.
"In overtime I think we did a really good job of not panicking and staying calm and composed," Von Puttkammer said. "We took offensive opportunities and stopped their opportunities. It would've been awesome to score a goal but we just couldn't do it."
Though Tufts outshot Middlebury 12 to 10, the teams remained locked at two as time expired, giving each a point for their efforts in the opener.
"A tie isn't the result we were hoping for but I think it bodes well overall for our future," O'Connor said. "With some key players out we still put up a pretty good result and I think we were the better team. We had people playing in different positions and for the first time so we're only going to get better in time and once we're at full strength I don't know that there's much that will be able to stop us."
