Tufts improved to 4-0 on the season with the victory, scoring the first four goals of the game and never trailing in the contest. Nine different Jumbos found the back of the net as the offense produced 55 shots and controlled possession for much of the afternoon.
The Jumbos opened the scoring midway through the first quarter when Jack Regnery tallied an unassisted goal at the 10:14 mark. Tufts quickly built momentum from there, adding goals from Brooks Hauser and a behind-the-back goal from first-year Mason Theis less than two minutes apart to take a 3-0 lead.
Chase Beyer extended the run with a goal at 5:01, pushing the advantage to four before Denison got on the board with a man-up tally. Tufts answered shortly after when Will Emsing scored with 2:24 remaining in the period to give the Jumbos a 5-1 lead after one quarter.
Tufts continued to control play in the second quarter. Garrett Kelly scored on an extra-man opportunity early in the period, and after Denison answered, the Jumbos added two more goals before halftime. Jackson Redd finished a feed from Beyer at 5:20 and Kelly added his second of the day with just six seconds remaining in the half to send Tufts into the break with an 8-2 advantage.
The Jumbos pulled away in the third quarter with a five-goal surge. After Denison scored early in the period, Tufts responded with four straight goals in a span of just over four minutes. Hauser and Regnery each netted strikes during the run while Redd and Regnery added additional tallies to extend the lead to 12-3. Henry Tweedy capped the quarter with an unassisted marker at 3:43 as Tufts carried a 13-3 margin into the final frame.
Hauser opened the fourth-quarter scoring with his third goal of the afternoon, and Kelly followed with his third tally moments later to push the Tufts lead to 15-3. Denison netted three straight goals midway through the quarter, but the Jumbos closed the scoring when Blake Washburn recorded his second goal of the season with 2:41 remaining to secure the 16-6 final.
Hauser, Kelly and Regnery each scored three goals to lead the Tufts offense, while Redd added two goals and an assist. Beyer and Emsing both recorded three-point performances with a goal and two assists apiece. In goal, Jack Old earned the win for Tufts with five saves in 45 minutes of action before several Jumbos saw time in the cage late in the game.
Defensively, first-year Jack Donovan continued to have a stellar first season with four ground balls and two caused turnovers, while Victor Salcedo was 7-of-9 at the face-off "X" while adding three ground balls. Ethan O'Neill also had three grounders for Tufts, while the quartet of Ben Clarke, Ben Frisoli, Davis Owens and Logan Lee each had two loose balls and a cause turnover.
Senior Erik Helgeson won all three of his face-offs, while Lucas De la Paz won four of his draws for the Jumbos.
Tufts also controlled the game in several statistical categories, holding advantages in shots (55-28), ground balls (44-34) and face-offs (17-9).
Michael Cassidy and Jonah Frank each had two goals for the Big Red (2-5), while Andrew Albert had 18 saves in the loss.
Tufts will be right back in action Saturday afternoon in the Mustang Classic's marquee match-up, as No. 1 Tufts takes on No. 2 Christopher Newport University at 3:30 p.m. in the eighth of 10 games on the weekend.
--JUMBOS--
