WENHAM, Mass.—An early goal off a set piece sent the Fighting Scots to an impressive 1-0 result at home against Tufts on Wednesday afternoon. The Fighting Scots avenged a 1-0 loss to the Jumbos a season ago and needed some late heroics to preserve the victory.
After being shutout in Medford a year ago by a then nationally ranked Jumbos squad, Gordon found the back of the net early in the rematch.
A dangerous foul committed by the visitors set Gordon up just a few feet outside the 18-yard box to the right. Senior Caleb Cole (Coatesville, Pa.) took the service and sent a perfect ball that skimmed over the top of the Tufts' defense, right to the head of midfielder Josh Cochran (Bellville, Ohio). Cochran headed the ball on a sharp angle, finding an open spot past keeper Bruce Johnson (Brewster, Mass.).
Tufts' Brett Rojas (Madison, N.J.) provided the first scoring chance for his side when he found open room about 30 yards out in the middle of the field. No Gordon defender stepped up on the midfielder and Rojas fired a shot that forced Gordon keeper Josh Spoonhour (Greencastle, Pa.) to make a diving stop to his right.
Gordon (3-1-1) looked pretty for a second goal of the half when rookie Michael Cuocci (Baltimore, Md.) got loose inside the 18 by the end line. Cuocci beat his defender to the inside and tried to pass the keeper, but Johnson made a pair of big stops to keep a 1-0 game.
The Fighting Scots held a 3-2 advantage in shots on goal in the first half with each keeper making two saves.
Gordon settled into a defensive game in the second half and Tufts obliged with several pressure opportunities. With the Fighting Scots play further back, Tufts was able to put three shots on frame, but none more dangerous than the chance with only seconds remaining.
The Jumbos received three corner kicks in the final 45 seconds as Gordon scrambled to get the ball out of range. Senior Daniel Sullivan (Brooklyn, N.Y.) got the best look of the night for the Jumbos, heading a perfect ball toward the crest of the goal. Sullivan stood unmarked at the six-yard line and received a great ball off of an initial clear by the Fighting Scots. Spoonhour tracked the ball in the air before having to dive high to his left to knock the ball over the crossbar.
Tufts' final corner with only a few ticks remaining was cleared by a Gordon defender as the horn sounded.
The Jumbos outshot Gordon 15-5 for the game and 11-2 in the second half, but only five opportunities had to be stopped by Spoonhour. The Gordon keeper picked up his first clean sheet of the season in full time. Sullivan made two saves for the Jumbos.
Both squads return to conference action on Saturday with home matches. Tufts welcomes Bates to campus while searching for its first win of the season. Gordon will face Nichols, a team who has found success against the Scots in recent years.
