Jumbos Stack Six on Bantams in Shutout Win

MEDFORD, MA (October 5, 2024) - The Tufts University women's soccer team fired on all cylinders to beat the Trinity College (Conn.) Bantams 6-0 in a New England Small College Athletic Conference match at Bello Field on Saturday afternoon.

The Jumbos (6-2-1, 3-2-1 NESCAC) hit the ground running against the Bantams (2-7-0, 0-4-0 NESCAC), pinning the visitors in their own end from the starting whistle. Defenders Lena Sugrue and Caroline O'Neill provided the foundation for Tufts, both having a stellar start at center back. They held a high line, alongside fullbacks Rachel Arcella and Jordan Cushner, and worked as a collective unit to bounce the few attempted Trinity attacks away. 

It didn't take long for the Jumbos to find the back of the net, as they earned a corner kick in the eighth minute of play. Sophomore midfielder Emily Nicholas delivered the corner, placing an inswinging cross directly onto the penalty shot. Sugrue, pushed up for the corner, was first to it, heading a shot that was blocked by a defender. A fortuitous bounce off the defender fell right at the feet of Arcella, who simply poked the ball past the scrambling Trinity goalkeeper, Lily Bracken. Tufts took a 1-0 lead inside of 10 minutes, as they have five times this season. 

From there, the Jumbos were rolling. They were all over the Bantams, providing them little room to maneuver offensively. Goalkeeper Gigi Edwards only twice in the first half, with each effort from Trinity being from range, giving the sophomore ample time to react and secure the ball. The Tufts midfield was clearly overwhelming the opposition, with Nicholas linking up with junior Caroline Kelly and sophomore Reese Birch to keep the ball in the visitor's half. 

Kelly would be the next Jumbo to earn a spot on the scoresheet, as she took over the ball near the center circle. She turned on the jets, and flew through the space awarded by her speed. A signature power shot from outside the penalty area soared past Bracken, and Kelly had earned her fourth goal of the season.

Head coach Martha Whiting made some substitutions late in the first half, mixing up the midfield and front line in lieu of fresh legs. The substitutes made their mark on the scoresheet, as junior Aoife O'Reilly slipped a lead pass to freshman Audrey Cromett. Cromett was in on goal, and a single touch was all she needed to open up the space to shoot the ball past Bracken for the third Jumbos goal. Cromett had scored her first collegiate goal to close the scoring in the first half.

The second half saw the Jumbos resume their offensive frenzy. Aires and Kelly both peppered the net, as they amassed five and six shots respectively. Kelly found the back of the net with her final shot of the game, as she reached into her bag of skills to whip out a nasty pullback turn. With her former marker in the dust, Kelly was left with only the goalkeeper to beat. Opting for the near-post shot, Kelly used her left-footed power to slip the ball past Bracken for the fourth Jumbos goal. Kelly scored her second goal of the game, and fifth of the season.

Three minutes later, Nicholas joined in on the fun. O'Reilly delivered a corner kick into the box, and freshman Phoebe Marsick nudged it along as she contested the ball in the air. Nicholas was wide open on the weak side of the defense, and took a touch towards goal before roofing the ball into the top of the net for the fifth Tufts score of the match. Nicholas had tallied her fourth goal of the season, continuing her two week hot-streak.

Just 68 seconds later, the Jumbos scored their sixth and final goal. Nicholas was involved once again, as she played a beautiful ball to a goal-side Aires. Aries miraculously held the line to stay onside, and flicked a looping header into the far corner of the goal, past a leaping Bracken to hextuple the Jumbos advantage. 

The remainder of the game saw senior goalkeeper Natalie Rinker make her season debut, and played a clean 28 minutes, distributing the ball well. She would not see a shot on goal, as the Jumbos defense made sure to make her debut a calm one. Freshman Caitlin Capitolo made her collegiate debut, playing a rock-solid 20 minutes at the right back position. Graduate student Erin Duncan made a bid for a seventh, firing a strong shot on goal from inside the penalty area that was only just palmed away by substitute Bantam goalkeeper Zoe Tamborello.

The Jumbos would play strong to the final whistle, limiting the Bantams to a single off-target shot in the second half, and earned their third NESCAC win with emphasis. They tied their season-high mark of six goals in a single match, and won the game by the largest goal differential since a 9-0 win at New England College in October of 2022.   

The Jumbos face a quick turnaround, as they return to Bello Field for a Monday night matchup against Regis at 7:00 PM.