The Tufts Daily
10
Sports
Jumbos must contain Mules’ dynamic offense
FOOTBALL
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tri-captain Luke Lamothe said. “Personally, I think he’s worked very hard and he deserves it. He’s going to take this program somewhere where it’s never been before.” Another reason why the Jumbos and Tufts football fans alike should be optimistic for the rest of the season is the fact that Tufts has just completed the most difficult portion of its schedule. Coming off three straight losses to teams with a combined 16-2 record, the Jumbos should have brighter days ahead. The rest of the Tufts season consists of games against Colby and Middlebury, who both stand at 2-4 thus far. Tufts, however, should still expect stiff competition from Colby. The Mules have been hot lately, riding a two-game winning streak into Saturday’s contest, including an offensive explosion against Bates last week, in which Colby put a season-high 37 points on the board. The outpouring of offense can be attributed to two players in particular, both of whom Tufts should be prepared to counter in Saturday’s game. Senior tri-captain quarterback Nick Kmetz has been extremely efficient passing the ball this year, and is a threat to run on any given play. This year has been just part of a successful collegiate career for Kmetz, who last week surpassed the 5,000 all-purpose yard mark, and is only 420 yards shy of 5,000 passing. Kmetz’s favorite target is a dynamic wide receiver by the name of Connor Walsh.
Walsh, also a senior tri-captain, ranks among the top 10 in the NESCAC in both receiving yards and receptions per game, but that’s not all he does. Last week against Bates, Walsh put on a dazzling display of offensive talents, throwing for a 26-yard touchdown — his second of the fall — catching a 64-yard touchdown throw from Kmetz and running one in for a score. Walsh’s performance earned him the NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week award. “Offensively, Connor Walsh has had a heck of a career … Nick Kmetz, the quarterback, that kid’s just a winner; if you look at our game last year he made some amazing plays,” Civetti said. “Walsh and Kmetz, those are two guys we have to keep an eye on.” In the 2010 game Civetti referred to, Kmetz threw for an impressive 392 yards and three touchdowns as the Mules completed a thrilling fourthquarter comeback and won 42-41 at Zimman Field. This matchup with Colby will be a big test for a Jumbos defensive unit that has shown glimpses of greatness, but lacked consistency. “We’re concentrating on stopping the run. Always defensively, [when we] stop the run, good things happen,” senior tri-captain J.T. Rinciari said. “We’re going to play fundamentally sound football, and just keep working hard like we’ve been doing.” Though the Jumbos are coming off a very frustrating loss to Amherst, they look at that game as a learning experience, and believe that they have ironed out the mistakes
that put them in an early 21-0 hole against the Lord Jeffs. “We can only improve after how we played last week. We didn’t come out strong in the first quarter, or the first half,” Lamothe said. “We picked up steam in the second half and did a little better, but we learned that you can’t take any snap for granted, every snap counts.” Meanwhile, the issue of who will play quarterback for the Jumbos has been clouded with uncertainty, and it is unclear how that problem will be resolved this week. Senior Johnny Lindquist was the starter for the majority of the season, but was sidelined last week due to a separated shoulder. Junior John Dodds, sophomore Matt Johnson and freshman Jack Doll all took snaps in the loss against Amherst, with Dodds starting and getting the majority of the playing time. Dodds had a disappointing outing, though, throwing two interceptions and connecting on only 11 of 24 pass attempts. Apart from finding continuity at the quarterback position, the biggest key to winning this week for Tufts will be to stop the run while containing the dynamic duo of Kmetz and Walsh. On offense, establishing the running game will set up play-action opportunities for the aerial attack, which are vital to success in Civetti’s West Coast-style offense. “From an offensive stand point, and really the whole team, we’ve shown that we can [play well] at times, but now it’s time to draw the line,” Civetti said. “It’s time to execute and put together a complete game, one play at a time.”
Friday, November 4, 2011
Rematch with Bowdoin could loom in title game
Volleyball
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the week, Isabel Kuhel, who — along with Spieler — are atop the team leaderboard in kills, recording 309, 273 and 166, respectively. In addition, Kuhel leads the conference with 115 blocks, 15 more than the second place player, Bowdoin senior Kristin Hanczor. “We had so many younger girls, so people doubted us,” senior tri-captain Lexi Nicholas said. “But they stepped up to the plate completely. They worked hard to get better every day and tried to be the best they could be.” The No. 7 seed Ephs stumble into the NESCAC championship having lost their last four matches, finishing the regular season with a record of 16-12, and 5-5 in the conference. Williams’ standouts are senior co-captain and libero Aly McKinnon and freshman outside hitter Claire Miller. McKinnon leads the team with 36 service aces and 368 digs, while Miller has recorded the most kills with 300 and is second with 24 service aces and 275 digs. The Jumbos will look to counter the Williams attack by maintaining their dominant net game, which is fueled by their focus on communication and teamwork. Many of the Jumbos’ victories during the regular season were a direct result of their chemistry on the court, especially during important points.
“Our mouths get our feet moving. That’s something we’ve proved all year,” head coach Cora Thompson said after the team’s victory over Emerson College last week. Nonetheless, it is important for Tufts to stay hungry and not try to do too much, something that has, at times, been a problem for the Jumbos. “This year when we got in trouble it would be because we’d get too comfortable when we got a lead,” Spieler said. “It is important that we maintain a sense of urgency and not relax when we get ahead.” If they beat Williams and then win their semifinal match, the Jumbos could potentially force a rematch with No. 1 Bowdoin, which enters the tournament with a 23-2 record and a flawless 10-0 mark in NESCAC matches. During their regular -season showdown, Bowdoin defeated Tufts in straight sets, and many members of the team are eager to play them again and earn their revenge. “We want [the opportunity] to play Bowdoin again and beat them this time,” Spieler said. But before they look forward to playing Bowdoin in the championship, the Jumbos must concentrate on winning their quarterfinal and semifinal matches. “It’s a match by match process as far as I’m concerned, but we are very excited,” Nicholas said.