Field hockey is still undefeated so far this season and has quickly climbed to No. 7 in the national rankings after notching three more big wins in the past week to move to 5-0. Tufts inaugurated its brand new Ounjian Field in style on Saturday with a decisive 2-0 win over the Bates Bobcats and then held off the Wellesley Blue 1-0 at home again on Tuesday. Tufts then thoroughly demolished an overmatched UMass Dartmouth team last night.
Last night’s matchup against the Corsairs was hardly competitive as the Jumbos got on the board early and often. Twenty different Jumbos played and six different players scored in what ended up being more of a training opportunity than a competition. Tufts outshot the hosts 37-1.
Sophomore Gigi Tutoni started the scoring just four minutes in and then picked up her fourth goal of the season in the second half. Senior forward Annie Artz picked up a pair of goals and an assist to lead the team with five goals and 11 points on the season. First-year Rachel Hamilton and junior Sarah Schaeffler picked up their first collegiate goals while junior Mary Kate Patton added one as well. Junior Mary Travers scored twice and had an assist. Senior co-captain Nicole Arata assisted two of the goals.
In a more meaningful game on Tuesday night, Tufts got revenge against No. 14 Wellesley, a team that beat Tufts 1-0 last season. A much stronger Jumbo squad flipped the score this year, and though the one-goal margin may suggest otherwise, the Jumbos were in command for most of the game.
Artz, who returned to the team after missing all of last season due to an injury, struck early with what would be the game-winner just before the seven-minute mark. The score came on the first of the Jumbos’ 29 shots (including 15 shots on goal), when junior Erin Sanders fired a ball toward the cage that Artz got her stick on and tipped in. Artz's goal was the game-winner, as the Jumbos held on to their lead until the final whistle.
Despite the shooting clinic the Jumbos put on for most of the rest of the game, the hosts had trouble finishing and could not come up with an insurance goal to put the Blue away. Wellesley goalkeeper sophomore Maggie Connelly settled down in front of the net and played a strong game, coming up with 14 saves and thwarting several of Tufts’ best opportunities.
Tufts’ defense, which has been solid through five games, shut down Wellesley’s offense until the last few minutes and allowed just six total shots, with two on goal. Down by just one goal, the Blue threatened in the final three minutes by earning a series of three penalty corners and firing off four shots. The closest attempt came with just a minute and a half to play when Wellesley sophomore Cecie Negron's potential equalizer clanged off the left post. The Jumbos’ calm presence on defense and the strong goalie play of sophomore Emily Polinski prevailed in the win.
Coach Tina McDavitt Mattera cited the team’s ongoing adjustment to playing on the new Astroturf surface of Ounjian Field as a major factor that inhibited scoring in the game, especially considering that the team only started practicing on it last Friday. She also cited a few missed touches at critical moments and strong goalie play from Connelly as possible reasons for the Jumbos’ scoring troubles.
Junior midfielder Celia Lewis noted that many players are already comfortable playing on the Astroturf, and she believes that the rest of the team will quickly grow accustomed to the new surface.
“A lot of us stayed here over the summer and played at Boston University, which has Astro, so we kind of got used to it through that,” Lewis said. “And also ... we say we’re an Astro team. It means short, quick passes and quick movement in the midfield, so I think it’s pretty easy to transition over. And the surface is just built for field hockey, so it’s so much easier to play on. We’re really lucky to have it.”
Tufts picked up its first win on the new Ounjian Field last Saturday after just one day of practice on it. Playing against a Bates team that traditionally has been in the bottom half of the NESCAC but looked much stronger last weekend, Tufts picked up its first shutout of the season and got scores from first-year forward Shannon Yogerst and from Artz in the 2-0 win.
The Jumbos earned a penalty corner 23 minutes into the game and fired off a pair of shots that Bobcats goalie sophomore Adelae Durand saved, but Yogerst was in perfect position for the rebound off of classmate Brigid Gliwa's shot and sent the ball back in for her first collegiate goal.
In the second half, the Jumbo defense kept up a solid performance and held the visitors to just three shots throughout the game, with only one on goal. Meanwhile, Artz padded Tufts’ lead with just under 10 minutes to go when she took a cross from junior Ellexa Thomas in the middle and slotted it in. The win allowed Tufts to move to 2-0 in NESCAC play.
As in the Wellesley contest, Tufts was able to get off an impressive number of shots — this time holding a 20-3 advantage in shots, with 13 shots on goal — but they had trouble finding the back of the net.
The defense, however, has been consistent and reliable during these early games and have turned in three straight shutouts. Tufts benefits from having multiple returning starters on defense, including Arata anchoring the back line along with experienced juniors Lewis and Thomas, while sophomore Issy Del Priore provides a calm, capable presence as well. Polinski, now in her second season starting in goal, has also settled down and looks much more comfortable.
“We have really good chemistry back there,” Lewis said. “Everyone is really willing to listen to everyone else, and if someone behind you tells you to step or there’s a girl on your left, girl to your right, we’ve been really listening and we do it quickly. And I think the more we play together, the more comfortable we’ll get marking people and when we switch into diamond defense — which is our main structure back there when we get past the hash lines. But I think our defense is doing great. The most important thing is just that we keep communicating and keep talking to each other, and hopefully we’ll continue to have shutouts.”
The team’s most significant negative of the week came when senior co-captain forward Dominique Zarrella, the team's leading scorer for the past two seasons, left Tuesday’s game midway through as back pain that has been nagging her recently flared up. It is unclear how many games she will miss, but Tufts will miss her experienced presence on the attack and her on-field leadership.
McDavitt Mattera, though, believes the team’s depth cushions the loss and noted the silver lining of being able to give some of her younger, talented forwards more playing time.
Tufts now prepares to host No. 18 Mary Washington on Ounjian tomorrow at 1 pm in what should be a competitive contest. The Jumbos appear to be hitting their stride early in the season and will look to continue that this weekend before they dive into more NESCAC action next week.
“The [team] attitude is so good this year, and everybody is pushing each other really hard and it’s been awesome,” McDavitt Mattera said. “The freshmen are fitting in great, the seniors are being great leaders, and the juniors have another level of confidence to them that they didn’t have as sophomores and they’re kind of like, ‘let’s get this done.’”
Field hockey undefeated through five games
