Sports

Men's Track and Field | Six Jumbos return from NCAAs as All-Americans

Ten members of the men's and women's track and field teams achieved All-American status this past weekend at the NCAA Div. III National Championships, including six Tufts men who earned a total of seven All-Amercan awards, more than Tufts has seen in years. Senior tri-captain Connor Rose, juniors Jeff Marvel, Bobby McShane, Matt Rand and Gbola Ajayi and sophomore Graham Beutler were the six to receive the honors, which are given to the top eight finishers in each event. "We had a very successful weekend. We are happy with it all around," Marvel said. "Across the board - Connor, the DMR, Gbola and me - coming back with six All-Americans, when last year we didn't have any - it was a big step forward for the program, and we are very happy with how things went." The men finished 17th as a team, earning 11 points on Friday and Saturday at the event hosted by Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. The team's first All-American finish of the weekend came in the Distance Medley Relay (DMR) on Friday evening. McShane, Beutler, Rose and Rand combined for an eighth-place finish in a time of 10:18.59. McShane led off the foursome in the 1,200-meter leg, handing off to Beutler for the 400 leg in eighth, the Jumbos' finishing position. Rose, in his second race of the day, just a few hours after the mile preliminaries, then took the baton for the 800 leg, with Rand anchoring in the 1,600 leg. "Bobby ran a good leg. He was up there battling at the front half for most of it, he faded off a little bit at the end but he handed off in eighth in good position, right off the lead pack, and then Graham ran well - he moved up one spot to seventh," Rand said. "Connor had just run the mile so he was pretty tired and he had some trouble holding onto the front pack. "I got the baton by myself basically - well off the lead pack and well ahead of the ninth and tenth place guys," Rand continued. "I went out fast to try to demoralize the two guys behind me, basically make them think they didn't have a chance to catch me, and then I slowed down quite a bit and just tried to hang on." Tufts' eighth-place finish was just enough for All-American honors - the first for McShane, Beutler and Rose and the third career honor for Rand. "We were going for All-American, and we got that, so we were satisfied with that," Rand said. "The time was slow, but it really doesn't matter at nationals. It was a tough, narrow track, Connor was going off the mile, and then I ran the whole mile leg by myself, so I think we just threw the time out the window and we were all happy with the All-American finish." Marvel was the top finisher for the Jumbos, earning fifth in the 800-meter run to mark his first career All-American performance. After not reaching the finals last indoor season in the event, Marvel was determined to move on this year. On Friday evening, he did just that, crossing the line in 1:53.52 for second in his preliminary heat - the fourth-fastest of the day - to earn one of eight spots in Saturday's finals. "In the trials, we were in the second heat, so we were able to see that the first heat went out fairly quickly, so that put more pressure on us to either run a fast time or get a top-two finish to automatically qualify [for the finals]," Marvel said. "That changed my strategy a little bit. I stayed up towards the front and kicked to get that second automatic spot." Saturday's race was a much slower and more tactical one, and Marvel's 1:54.32 was enough for fifth place. "In the finals, it was a very strategic race. It went out very slowly and then about 400 meters in, everyone started kicking, and it was whoever was in the best position near the leaders, basically it finished in that order," Marvel said. "Obviously I am very happy with it. It was an All-American finish, which was the goal going into the meet." In addition to his DMR effort, Rose notched a second All-American finish on Saturday. Rose had Friday's fifth best mark in the mile preliminaries, crossing the line in 4:13.59 to advance to the 10-man final. The next day, Rose pulled off another strong performance in his third race of the weekend, with a big final kick to move up from 10th to sixth and earn a time of 4:15.85, good enough for sixth.   "Connor had an interesting race," Marvel said. "He found himself in the back early on and I don't think he felt that great, but I think it is a testament to his training that he was able to kick in the last 600 and catch a few people and get that sixth spot." On Saturday, Ajayi added yet another impressive effort to the team's weekend. Ajayi notched a personal best of 48-4 in the triple jump, nearly a foot better than his qualifying jump of 47-5 3/4. The leap earned Ajayi sixth place - a six-spot improvement from his initial seed - and All-American honors in his first trip to nationals. "Gbola had a huge PR [by 30 centimeters] in the first jump in the final, and that was enough to lock up the All-American place," Marvel said. "He was really happy with it. He outperformed his seed by a lot and that's always fun to do." Junior Curtis Yancy competed for Tufts in the weight throw on Friday, but came up short this weekend, fouling on each of his attempts to place 13th. "Curtis had a tough day. He had some good throws that probably would have made finals, but he was just outside of the triangle," Rand said. "It was a good experience for him and he will certainly be back at nationals and get another chance at it." After a successful conclusion to the indoor season, the Jumbos now look ahead to the outdoor competitions in the spring.

Zach Drucker | The Loser

This past weekend, the New York Jets made two decisive moves in one swift action. Jets management extended much maligned starting quarterback Mark Sanchez's contract, solidifying Sanchez's role at the helm of the organization. But this move had a reverberating upshot, since it effectively removed the Jets from the Peyton Manning sweepstakes.

Bittersweet: Jumbos' tournament run ends in heartbreaking fashion with nailbiting loss to Tommies

After trailing by as many as 14 in the second half, the women's basketball team was just one basket away from completing an incredible comeback and upsetting No. 12 St. Thomas in the final minute of Friday night's Sweet 16 game in Chicago. But several late-game miscommunications — both on the court and at the scorers' table — derailed their hopes of taking down the Tommies and ended their historic season. 

Men's Lacrosse | Second-half carries Jumbos past overmatched Continentals

It was a tale of two halves in Saturday's season opener, as the No. 2 men's lacrosse team battled back from a one-goal halftime deficit to outscore Hamilton 10-2 in the final 30 minutes. The Jumbos ultimately defeated the host Continentals 15-8, earning their first victory of the year and giving the hosts their first taste of NESCAC competition.

Women's Lacrosse | Egan's game-winner caps statement win

Nearly 10 minutes into the second half on Saturday, the No. 14 women's lacrosse team was in danger of suffering a bitterly disappointing start to its season. Trailing No. 7 Hamilton 6-3, the Jumbos were consistently getting beaten to loose balls by the NESCAC debutants, and they endured prolonged stretches on defense as the Continentals maintained possession and tried to put the game out of reach.

Women's Track and Field | The art of throwing far

Men's Lacrosse | Tufts looks to silence doubters in season opener at Hamilton

Women's Track & Field | Fantastic four fly to Iowa for NCAA Championships

Women's Lacrosse | Women's lacrosse returns eight seniors, ready to contend

Men's Track & Field | Seven Jumbos to vie for All-American honors at Nationals

Baseball | Veteran presence helps to support youthful revolution

Ultimate Frisbee | E-men number one in national rankings

Men's Tennis | Jumbos set sights on lofty spring season goals

Seasoned seniors and talented juniors in the top spots, and a new coach with an invigorating system, give the men's tennis team considerable promise for their upcoming spring season despite the loss of several starters and a daunting early schedule.

Sam Gold | The OT

The report implicated between 22 and 27 defensive players, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, general manager Mickey Loomis and beloved coach Sean Payton — the man often credited with reinvigorating what was, and in many ways still is, America's most broken major city.

Men's Lacrosse | NESCAC preview: Amherst, Middlebury, Tufts lead the way

Softball | Senior Cantone leads youthful Tufts squad

As the 2012 softball season approaches, the Jumbos are preparing to improve on a strong 2011 campaign. Led by co−captains Lena Cantone and Izzie Santone (E ‘11), the team played to a 23−18 overall record — including an impressive 9−3 mark against NESCAC opponents — and won two games in the NESCAC tournament before being knocked out by Middlebury. Santone and fellow senior Kim Miner (LA ‘11) have since graduated, and the program will now focus on building around its young talent. Cantone will undoubtedly be the leader both on and off the field. Now entering her fourth year with the team, the 5−foot−2 infielder is coming off a terrific junior season, during which she hit for an astonishing .435 average and collected 34 RBIs. Cantone's RBI total was surpassed only by rising sophomore catcher Jo Clair, who emerged as one of the great individual talents in the NESCAC, exploding for 42 RBIs in her first season and shattering the school's single−season homerun record with 16 long balls. Clair had an almost comical .815 slugging percentage last year, .271 points higher than anyone else on the team. There will probably not be another Jo Clair in this year's freshman class, but the team is eager to see what the new players will bring to the table. All signs suggest they will not disappoint. "Our freshman class is really strong," Clair said. "They play multiple positions, they are versatile, and they are all great hitters. We're all excited to see what they can do on the field." The Jumbos will open their 2012 campaign with the usual trip down to Clermont, Fla., for the annual NTC Spring Games from March 17−24. The trip will not only provide some early−season game action, but will also allow players and coaches to build chemistry and get acclimated with one another as they prepare to make another run at the NESCAC title. "We have really good team chemistry as it is," sophomore infielder Chrissie Massrey said. "But those 10 days together really foster a family environment and help us to realize what our goals are as a team and help us to gauge just how good we can be." Tufts will return home from Florida to take on Springfield College on the road on March 28. Then, the Jumbos will land back in Medford to battle conference rival Bowdoin in a three−game series from March 30−April 1. "Our first and primary goal is to win NESCACs," Massrey said. "But we also think we can go deep into Regionals. This is our year to do it."

Squash | Jumbos go winless at Individual Nationals against top opponents

Wins proved elusive for the men's and women's squash teams at Individual Nationals at Amherst this past weekend, but the event offered the Jumbos a chance to compete against some of the nation's best players and to see how they can improve. None of the three players who represented Tufts at Individual Nationals had previous experience at an event of this magnitude, and the experience they gained will serve them well in the future.

Alex Prewitt | Live from Mudville

Oh, how we love our NFL scandals. Spygate. Sex boat. And now, bounties.

Men's Lacrosse | Jumbos hit the beach for Judgment Day 2012

On Sunday, for the third consecutive year, the men's lacrosse squad held its annual Judgment Day team building workout. But this year, the Jumbos knew "The Program" would be a little different: they were headed to Hingham to spend the day in sand and icy waters. The Jumbos drove south on Sunday afternoon, and, led by former Navy SEAL Coleman Ruiz, began their rigorous workout. Designated Jumbos led their teammates through various calisthenics on the beach, focusing on detailed execution. With temperatures in the thirties, the team was cold, sandy and tired. And they knew this was only the beginning. The Program staff split the Jumbos into smaller "crews" and gave them inflatable rafts to carry. The groups raced across the beach, competing against their own times. The field trip culminated with a team−wide boat race to an island and back — a true test of their communication and teamwork. "Doing all of this on the beach was more challenging than doing it on Bello Field," said senior attacker Jordan Korinis of his third time through The Program. "Running on the sand can be tough, especially after diving into the freezing ocean to get fully submerged." Yesterday morning, the team returned home to Bello for part two of the process. The workout began at 4:30 a.m. in subzero temperatures. The Jumbos repeated their pushups, mountain climbers and, like every year, jumping jacks. Once they achieved their goal of "one perfect jumping jack" — meaning every member of the team completed a flawless jumping jack in perfect unison — the training was complete. Though the players walked off the turf exhausted, they knew they were better prepared for Saturday's season opener at Hamilton because of it. "The most valuable takeaway for the upperclassmen was the reminder that this team is 0−0 and has accomplished very little so far, except for the hard work we have put in since last summer," Korinis said. "As for the underclassmen, I hope that it reinforced the example of the physical and mental toughness and focus that needs to be exerted on a daily basis in order to make this season a success." Ultimately, the experience sharpened their focus on the task at hand. "Judgment Day requires some minimum level of physical fitness to complete, but it is a mental exercise," Korinis continued. "It is a great tool for building mental toughness while also being a great team−building activity. The idea is to keep the mental edge on whoever our opponents are. Right now, the team's goal is to beat Hamilton and be 1−0."

Inside the NBA | Dissecting the top eight teams in the Eastern Conference

Just over halfway through the NBA season, the Eastern Conference playoff picture is more or less set, with eight teams firmly holding on to playoff spots at the moment. Unlike the West, the rest of the Eastern playoff race will be mainly about improving positioning in the standings, rather than establishing a .500 record just to get into the playoffs. The current playoff picture features a blend of hungry, youthful teams and superstar-driven teams ready to make title runs. Here's how they stack up: