Date: November 6, 2001
Written by Kate Gluckman

MEDFORD-- The Tufts University men's soccer team finished their 2001 season this past Saturday (Nov. 3) with a 1-0 loss in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) tournament semi-finals against Middlebury. Head Coach Ralph Ferrigno's Jumbos went 6-3 to finish third in the conference, and were 11-4-1 overall. They outlasted Wesleyan in the first round of the NESCAC tournament on penalty kicks.

ECAC New England Champions in 2000, the Jumbos again received national and regional recognition during the season. They rose to as high as third in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) New England Division III poll and 23rd in the NSCAA national poll. The Jumbos were sixth in the November 5 regional poll.

Ferrigno was named NESCAC Coach of the Year after leading Tufts to its best NESCAC showing since 1996. His side featured four All-NESCAC selections: senior back Mike Prindiville (Manchester, CT/Loomis Chaffee) on the First Team, and junior Garrett Dale (Upper Montclair, NJ/Montclair), junior Matt MacGregor (Little Compton, RI/Middletown) and sophomore Brian Mikel (Tucson, AZ/Canyon de Oro) on the Second Team.

Tufts began the 2001 season with a 2-1 win against non-conference opponent Lasell (Sept. 12). Leading scorer Dale opened up the scoring for the Jumbos with a goal and an assist during the game. Dale went on to score eight goals and eight assists for a total of 24 points for the year, good for fifth place in scoring for the conference.

The Jumbos then faced NESCAC rival Middlebury. With goals from Mikel and senior Pat Brophy (North Reading, MA/Concord-Carlisle), Tufts fought the Panthers into double overtime before losing, 3-2. This exciting match against the defending NESCAC champions showed that Tufts would be a factor in the conference race. Brophy ended the season with two goals and four assists for a total of eight points. Mikel, slowed by injuries late in the season, finished with three goals and two assists for ten points.

After that loss, Tufts put together a three-game winning streak including key wins against conference opponents Colby and Amherst. The Jumbos beat Colby 2-0 with goals from tri-captains Prindiville and MacGregor. As the center of Tufts defensive line, Prindiville had a break-out offensive year with three goals and two assists. MacGregor finished the season with six goals and four assists, ranking second on the team and seventh in the conference for scoring. The 1-0 double overtime win at Amherst on a goal by Dale gave the Lord Jeffs their first loss.

Bates put a stop to the Jumbos' streak, handing Tufts its second loss of the season, 2-1, on September 29. Taken as a wake-up call, the team then strung together a five-game winning streak including three essential NESCAC victories.

On October 2 the Jumbos showed resilience in battling Bowdoin College for a 2-1 win. MacGregor opened the scoring in the 25th minute on a pass from Dale. The Polar Bears responded in the 71st minute with a free kick at the top of the box. Seven minutes later Prindiville, with his second game-winning goal of the season, lifted the Jumbos over an excellent Bowdoin team that would also advance to the NESCAC tournament semis.

MacGregor continued his offensive excellence into the next game against Wesleyan. He scored two goals, including the game-winning overtime goal that gave the Jumbos the 2-1 win. For his efforts he was named NESCAC Player of the Week.

Prindiville also continued his uncharacteristic scoring in another NESCAC match against Trinity College on October 13. With his final goal of the season he gave Tufts the 1-0 win. Freshman goal keeper Scott Conroy (Madison, CT/Choate Rosemary Hall) tallied his fourth shutout for the year in the match. Ending the season with five total, Conroy was ranked second in the conference with an excellent 1.07 goals against average. In the backfield, sophomore Jessie Dinner (Port Washington, NY/Schreiber), Prindiville, sophomore Mike Blea (Albuquerque, NM/Sandia Prep) and junior Rupak Datta (Randolph, NJ/Randolph) were a major factor in that fine accomplishment.

Sophomore Alex Berg (Danvers, MA/Danvers), who provided a spark when he joined the starting lineup halfway into the season, had two goals against Johnson & Wales on Oct. 17 in a win that ran the winning streak to five. The good times came to an end with Tufts' loss to Williams College on October 20. Unable to stop the offensive prowess of the Purple Cows, the Jumbos fell 4-1. Senior tri-captain Brad Stitchberry (Bryn Mawr, PA/Radnor) was able to penetrate the defense for Tufts' only goal. He finished the season with five goals for ten points.

Tufts ended their regular season on a high note with a 4-1 win over Connecticut College on October 27th. That night they took a bus to Middlebury for the first round of the playoffs the next day at 10:30 am.

Entering the NESCAC tournament as the third seed, Tufts took the field just 21 hours after kicking off against Conn. They defeated Wesleyan in spectacular fashion, winning on penalty kicks after tying 3-3 in 150 minutes of regulation and overtime play. Stitchberry, injured at the start of the season, gave the Jumbos his most impressive offensive game of the year with two goals, and Mikel, who also battled injuries this fall, added the third. For his play Stitchberry received the honor of NESCAC Co-Player of the Week. Brophy scored the winning penalty kick after a Conroy save as the Jumbos won the round, 6-5.

In the semi-finals, Middlebury and Tufts waged their typical war, but the Panthers won out. After a scoreless first half, the Panthers opened the scoring 15 minutes into the second half and Tufts couldn't respond. Middlebury went on to lose to Williams 5-1 in the final of the tournament.

With this winning season Tufts continued to prove its competitiveness within the NESCAC. The four losses are their fewest since 1996. The club is 32-14-4 over the last three years. Brophy, Prindiville and Stitchberry will graduate, but Dale, MacGregor, and Datta will return as leading seniors.

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