Defending a title can be difficult, especially in one of the most competitive conferences for a sport. The Class of 2027 has learned the difficulties that come with high expectations, as a team consistently ranked near the very top of the polls with the on-field performance to prove it. Unfortunately, they fell short this past weekend in a 1–2 loss against the now top-ranked Middlebury for their second loss of the season.
Heading into the game, both sides had plenty to expect. The two last played each other in last season’s tense NESCAC semifinal game, when the Jumbos came back from 2–0 down to win in extra time, propelling the team toward the national championship. Visiting Middlebury hadn’t won at Tufts since 2010 and came into the game undefeated, having only allowed one goal in the nine matches they played before going to Bello Field. The Panthers brought the best defense in Division III and a No. 2 ranking to Medford, giving the then-ranked No. 15 Jumbos a difficult challenge.
The Jumbos had plenty of reason for celebration before the game. Tufts’ offense had been firing on all cylinders, scoring three goals in rapid succession to erase a three-goal deficit in a tie against Amherst and four in a huge victory at Hamilton the previous weekend. The game on Saturday drew large crowds not only for Parents and Family Weekend, but also for Senior Day, which celebrated the team’s six seniors and two fifth-years.
“There [are] people coming to watch, and we owe it to them to really put on a good performance,” said junior midfielder Ellis Denby, who cited “Bello magic” as the reason for Tufts’ home-field advantage.
Before the game, parents and siblings celebrated their sons with a short ceremony. Many Jumbos have contributed incredible amounts of time and effort throughout the years, and Senior Day offered a chance to spotlight these players who are soon to graduate.
Right from the start, the Panthers created offensive pressure. They lined up with five players on the right wing for kickoff, mimicking a trick they’d pulled off in their last game against Maine Maritime Academy to win 8–0. They opted not to try as much aggression early on but still put up five shots in the first 17 minutes of the game. Three of their chances came from set pieces that forced fifth-year goalkeeper Nikola Antic to make three saves.
The two teams held possession almost equally for the first half, but the stalwart Middlebury defense pressured every Tufts forward as soon as he received the ball, making it hard for the Jumbos to create chances. The Panthers tended to be more resourceful with the ball but weren’t able to create incredibly dangerous breakaways. The Jumbos managed only one shot courtesy of sophomore forward Ben Ortman, a harmless header that rose far above the crossbar. At halftime, the 0–0 scoreline suggested the teams had played equally, but Middlebury had played as the stronger team thus far, outshooting Tufts 8–1.
Middlebury struck quickly in the second half after a high cross by Panther forward Harper Nicholl created confusion in the box. The cross enabled forward Will Sawin to tap the ball to midfielder Colin Dugan, who blasted it into the back of the net in the 49th minute to score the first goal of the game, beating out Antic. Dugan scored his fourth goal of the season and jubilantly celebrated with the rest of his team by the bench. The Jumbos tried retaliating immediately afterward with the first genuine shots on target of the game but still couldn’t break past the Panthers’ defense. The back-and-forth affair continued except with a much bolder Tufts squad that wanted to equalize. Middlebury had not been down for a single minute of the season thus far, and Tufts clearly wished to change Middlebury’s security.
Sawin wanted more than just the first goal, and the Panthers hunted for more chances as they continued. In the 67th minute, Dugan passed the ball out wide to Sawin, who waited in the left wing. Sawin dribbled past three Jumbos to get into the box and delivered a beautiful strike between an additional three that curved into the back corner, doubling the Panthers’’s tally on the day. Sawin became the top scorer among all NESCAC players this season with his calculated kick and forced the Jumbos to scramble.
The Jumbos took five shots in the 10 minutes following Sawin’s goal but couldn’t get past the Middlebury defense. For all the pressure Tufts created deep into Middlebury territory, they couldn’t create goal-scoring opportunities. As Sawin proved, however, it only takes a little bit of genius to disturb the whole game. In a relatively stale position surrounded by three Panthers, senior forward Xavier Canfin delivered a beautiful lobbed ball towards the right post, where it met Denby after a bounce. With a half-volley, Denby shot the ball with a powerful right-foot strike, bouncing the ball over keeper Leon Brody before it nestled into the back left corner.
Denby knew the work hadn’t finished yet, and he humbly returned to midfield as a reminder to the rest of the team. With less than nine minutes left, the ’Bos had to face the clock. Middlebury realized the urgency too: As the saying goes, a 2–0 lead is the most dangerous lead in sports. They fought with new veracity, trying to get their first shot on the board since Sawin’s curler.
The Jumbos had momentum with them and tried time and time again to find the equalizer. A late shot by Brody created some confusion for the defense before a player cleared it for a corner. With less than a minute left, cries arose from both benches over what had happened; both called for a foul against the other team. Neither got their preferred verdict, and Denby went to the corner flag to take the kick.
Every Tufts player, including Antic, gathered towards Middlebury’s goal for one final chance. The cross met the head of defender Ari Klayman, who cleared the ball towards Canfin. Attempting to double his assist total, Canfin tried crossing it in one final time, but the final shot by Ortman harmlessly rolled past the goal line for a goal kick, effectively ending the game in favor of Middlebury 2–1.
Despite the crushing loss on Senior Day, the Jumbos trudge on. As Denby put it: “Focus on what you can control and just win the day each and every day.” Tufts will return to the pitch in Lewiston for a match against Bates on Saturday.
Following the match, Middlebury drew against Wesleyan, a match where they were losing for less than 15 minutes before equalizing. The Panthers moved up to No. 1 on the NCAA Power Index rankings while the Jumbos moved to No. 16.
