Despite failing to advance any player beyond the second round of the singles or doubles brackets, the men's tennis team knows that its participation in the ITA Regional Championships at Williams over the weekend was certainly time well-spent.
The women's cross country team continued its string of strong performances this season, coming in third out of 16 teams at the 41st annual Codfish Bowl in Franklin Park in Boston on Saturday. While originally scheduled to take part in the Conn. College Invitational, the Jumbos had to make last-minute changes on Friday afternoon after the race hosted by the Camels was cancelled due to heavy rain.
Following a schedule change that sent the men's cross country team to a race in Franklin Park in Boston instead of the Conn. College Invitational, junior Jesse Faller continued to show his mettle as one of the top Jumbo runners, winning the Codfish Bowl Saturday.
Tufts athletics continued to dominate with solid play this weekend, which ended in conference accolades for three Jumbo competitors. Sophomore Sarah Nolet was named NESCAC Player of the Week for women's soccer, junior Jesse Faller claimed Performer of the Week honors in men's cross country and sophomore Caitlin Updike earned Player of the Week for volleyball.
Breaking news: The Tampa Bay Rays are really good. Like, a lot better than they were last year, and the year before that, and the year before that, and … you get the idea. It's been the hot-button topic in baseball all year, as the Rays have gone from 66 wins last season to 97 this year and their first playoff berth. As the Rays open their postseason run Thursday afternoon (opponent to be announced), it's given us at the Daily an opportunity to reflect. Here are 10 more of the great turnaround stories in sports history: 10. 1967 Red Sox. In ‘66, the American League standings were a historical anomaly of sorts — the Yankees finished dead last in the 10-team league, with the Red Sox a half-game ahead in ninth. Then came the "Impossible Dream," as Triple Crown winner Carl Yastrzemski led the Sox to the ‘67 World Series. They fell short against Bob Gibson's Cardinals. 9. 2004-05 Suns. Call it the "Nash factor" — the Suns' acquisition of the soon-to-be two-time MVP transformed the franchise right away. The Suns went from a 29-win season to a 62-20 finish, a top seed in the West and an MVP for Nash in his first year in town. As for a Finals berth, though, we're still waiting… 8. 2006 Tigers. In 2003 the Tigers were a horrific 43-119 ... eww. Yet three years later, All-Star outfielder Magglio Ordonez, gritty manager Jim Leyland and Hall of Fame catcher Pudge Rodriguez had all come to town, and the team battled its way to its first AL pennant since 1984. 7. 2007-08 Penguins. Long gone are the days when Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr roamed the ice at the Igloo in the Steel City. After rumblings abounded of moving the franchise to a new city, the 2005 draft shifted the Penguin hockey landscape as they selected "Sid the Kid" Crosby first overall. The team went from the cellar to the top by the 2008 playoffs as they advanced all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals before bowing out to the Red Wings. 6. 1997-98 Spurs. Thanks to perhaps the luckiest roll of a ping-pong ball in NBA history, the Spurs were able to draft a 21-year-old kid named Tim Duncan out of Wake Forest. The result was an immediate 36-win upswing and an NBA title the following season. Talk about a good lottery! David Robinson should have gotten injured more often. 5. 1999 Diamondbacks. The expansion D-Backs burst onto the scene in 1998 with an expectedly crappy 65-97 record. Fast forward to the next fall to find the Arizonans with a sparkling 100-62 mark, and the Big Unit slaying every NL hitter in sight. Despite a tough NLDS loss to the Mets that season, the D-Backs wouldn't be denied as they took home their first World Series victory two years later. 4. 1999 Rams. Once one of the sorriest franchises in the NFL, the Rams made a stunning transformation into the "Greatest Show on Turf" as they rode second-year "Marshall, Marshall, Marshall" Faulk and journeyman quarterback Kurt "Who is this Guy" Warner. After finishing an abysmal 4-12 the season prior, the Rams went to a dominating 13-3 and outlasted the Titans 23-16 in Super Bowl XXXIV. The team swept the season's slate of offensive awards and the offense led the NFL in total yardage and scoring, while the defense limited the opposition to an NFL-low 74.3 yards per game. 3. Jennifer Capriati. After turning professional at age 14, Capriati reached the semifinals at the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open and even went on to win the gold medal in Barcelona in 1992. She later put her tennis career on hold and went through personal challenges, including an arrest for marijuana possession, but Capriati would return to the tour and go on to win three major titles and become No. 1 in the world. 2. 1991 Twins and Braves. The classic "worst to first" story — for the first time in World Series history, two teams that had finished last the previous year were vying for October glory. NL MVP Terry Pendleton brought the Braves all the way to an extra-inning Game 7 before Jack Morris legendarily out-dueled John Smoltz, pitching a 10-inning shutout to win it all. 1. 2007-08 Celtics. "What does ‘top of the world' feel like, Kevin?" With the acquisitions of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and a host of supporting cast members, the Celtics engineered the biggest turnaround in NBA history, going from the NBA's second-worst in 2006-07 to a title this June. If that's not an inspiration to cellar-dwellers everywhere, then what is?
While the Tufts golf team was able to escape most of the lousy weather that battered the Boston area this weekend, the Jumbos were not so quick to dodge the stiff competition that blocked their path toward victory at this weekend's NESCAC qualifier tournament.
The football team's blowout win over Bates this weekend, fueled by a stark 385-167 advantage in total offense, stemmed from one simple concept.
In its hardest fought match of the season, the volleyball team rallied to erase a 2-0 deficit against Conn. College and take the final match of the MIT Invitational, winning the tournament and extending its perfect record to 13-0 overall and 3-0 in the NESCAC.
Although endless winds and rain battered Zimman Field Saturday afternoon, the football team's storm on the field served as the focus for the Homecoming game. The Jumbos, powered by 365 yards of total offense and a lockdown defense, steamrolled Bates by a final score of 34-7.
The Homecoming rains weighed heavy on the visiting Bobcats Saturday as the women's soccer team took down Bates 2-0 at Bello Field. Freshman Jamie Love-Nichols and sophomore Sarah Nolet scored one goal apiece to lead their team to the key NESCAC victory.
It was business as usual for the field hockey team Homecoming Saturday as the Jumbos continued their perfect season by capitalizing on open looks to overcome the Bates Bobcats 4-2 on Bello Field.
The men's soccer team's hot start was brought to a simmer Saturday as the Jumbos lost 2-0 to the Bates Bobcats on a rain-soaked Bello Field. The loss dropped Tufts' record to a sub-.500 1-2-0 in the conference (4-2-1 overall) and gave Bates its first NESCAC victory this season, raising its record to a matching 1-2-0 (3-2-0 overall).
Tomorrow's Homecoming game is not exactly a marquee match-up for the football team.
For the past three years the men's tennis team has taken the court against the Salve Regina Seahawks in the first dual match of the fall season, offering a preliminary assessment of the squad's play before heading to the more important spring portion of the season.
5 The number of undefeated Jumbo varsity teams so far this fall. They are field hockey (5-0), football (1-0), women's soccer (3-0), volleyball (9-0) and men's tennis (1-0).
As the men's soccer team prepares for its game against Bates tomorrow, the players would be wise to take a look at recent history for an example of what not to do on Homecoming Day.
The field hockey team has been unstoppable this season, outscoring its opponents 29-3. This Homecoming weekend, in front of a large crowd of Tufts students, alumni and fans, the Jumbos, who are 3-0 in the conference and a perfect 5-0 overall, will look to extend their winning streak even further with a victory over Bates tomorrow.
This weekend, the women's soccer team is going from one rivalry to the next.
