Women's Soccer Beats Endicott With Two Goals in One Minute

MEDFORD, MA (October 7, 2025) - The number five ranked Tufts University women's soccer team faced a tough defense in the Endicott College Gulls as they downed their visitors 2-0 in a gritty team win on Bello FIeld on Tuesday evening.

The Jumbos (9-0-1) began the game as they have every other, with dominant possession and solid tempo humming along. The Gulls (6-6-1) anticipated this, and stacked up bodies in their own defensive end to limit the host's progression into the attacking areas of the pitch. The Jumbos were trying their best to break down the dense defense, but they would be unable to figure things out in the final third.

Wingers Waverly Sumner and Jordyn Miller were having some effect down the sidelines, but the Gulls were throwing everything they had into the middle of the pitch. The visitors clogged up any available shooting lane, having several Tufts shots blocked by a defender in front. Sumner would manage the only shot on goal for either side in the first half as she poked a ball through in a desperate attempt to put the ball home, but the opposing goalkeeper swallowed it up without drama. 

The first half saw no score, and Tufts was visibly frustrated as they headed into halftime. That frustration was put to good use, as the Jumbos came out flying for the second half. 

The hosts ramped up the tempo, with junior Emily Nicholas in the center of it all. The maestra commanded the center of the pitch, winning battles and dishing out the ball to open teammates to keep the play alive. They tallied two shots on goal and a rattled crossbar in the first 13 minutes of the second half. 

The Gulls made sweeping substitutions to keep their defenses fresh, but the Jumbos continued to grind them down. Through the bulk of the second half, the Jumbos held the ball deep in the Endicott end. Maggie Rogers and Jordyn Miller both had chances saved by opposing goalkeeper Samatha MacCormack. The Jumbos were knocking, it was just a matter of time before the door came off its hinges.

In the 80th minute, the floodgates finally came open. Claire Brady came up with the ball off of a throw-in in the attacking third, sliding the ball to the endline for Emily Nicholas to retrieve. Nicholas held the ball just long enough to attract several defenders her way, freeing up Elsi Aires in the center of the penalty area. A crisp cross and one-touch finish from the Jumbos leading scorer gave the home team a 1-0 lead with 10 minutes to spare. Nicholas and Brady both picked up assists, and Tufts was firing on all cylinders. 

They wasted no time in finding some insurance. This time it came from the other side of the pitch, as Sumner worked the ball into the far corner of the attacking third. A cross to the top of the box found Caroline Kelly with space to shoot, and shoot she did. A powerful strike into the bottom right hand corner gave Tufts the 2-0 lead, coming just 46 seconds after their initial score.

The final 10 minutes saw some honest attempts from the Gulls, but sophomore goalkeeper Greta Steege would not have to make a save as the Jumbos defense saw out the win. 

Tufts won their ninth game of the year to stay unbeaten heading into homecoming weekend. They will host the Bates Bobcats this Saturday for senior day at 3:30 pm.