Men's Soccer Scores Four on the Road at Hamilton

CLINTON, NY (September 21, 2024) - The Tufts University men's soccer team showed their offensive depth as they beat Hamilton by a score of 4-1 at Love Field on Saturday afternoon.

The Jumbos (5-0-1) started as strong as they possibly could, opening the scoring just 66 seconds into the NESCAC match. Liam Gerken was the goalscorer, and he earned his third goal of the season thanks to an attempted clearance off of a corner kick that landed right at his feet. With a clear shooting lane from just outside the penalty area, he fired into the back of the net, giving the Jumbos a very early lead over the Continentals (2-4). 

The visitors were off to a hot start, but Hamilton was quick to respond. They tested junior goalkeeper Nikola Antic with a shot on goal soon after the Tufts goal, but the Jumbos netminder was more than up to the task, scooping up the ball securely. Antic's save would be the only one he had to make in the first half, as the Jumbos possessed the ball in the Hamilton half for most of the first 45.

Sophomore Xavier Canfin impacted the offense positively in the first half, attempting two shots in the first half. The second half was where he ended up on the scoresheet. Only 103 seconds into the second half, Canfin weaved his way into the penalty area, dancing through the Hamilton defense before releasing a shot towards goal that slid underneath the diving Continental goalkeeper, Peter Montesano Scheibe. The Jumbos took a 2-0 lead to start the second half.

From the Canfin's goal until the end of the match, it was all Jumbos. Hamilton struggled to leave their own end, and when they did, there wasn't much threat towards the goal protected by Antic. The five saves he would make across 81 minutes were routine. 

Tufts substitute, junior Henry Perkins, would score his first goal of the season in the 67th minute of the match. A pass that made a precise incision through the Hamilton defense from sophomore Bijan Akhtarzandi-Das allowed Perkins to charge towards goal uninhibited by the opposition. A fake shot and deft cut to his left later, and he had scored the third goal of the game for the Jumbos.

15 minutes later, Perkins would strike once again, this time using his head to score off of a throw-in that was delivered perfectly by sophomore Ben Brown. The most remarkable aspect of the fourth goal for Tufts was that Brown was substituted into the game for that play. An excellent substitution by any metric.

With a healthy 4-0 lead, Antic was subbed out in the 82nd minute, allowing junior Sammy Kao to make his season debut. Unfortunately for Kao, he was tested just minutes into his first appearance of the year. Making his first save easily, Kao was put up against a penalty kick in the 89th minute. Hamilton defender Ben LaBranche stepped up to the spot and scored, giving the Continentals a late score. 

The late score was all they would get, as the Jumbos made sure to shut the door on any further chances in the waning seconds of the match. The final whistle sounded, and the Jumbos came away with an important NESCAC win on the road.

Tufts has a quick turnaround, playing in a midweek game at Emerson in Boston on Tuesday at 6:00 PM.