It was a given Yale would be less experienced than it was accustomed to this season. Such is life when a program loses an entire season and more than half of another one.

Yet here the Bulldogs sit at 6-2 after trouncing Boston University 22-15 on Tuesday. That game was an exception. The rest of Yale’s games were decided by four goals or fewer. The combined margin of the five games immediately prior to Tuesday was just eight goals.

It’s the byproduct of talent and poise blending together. It’s also a function of coach Andy Shay turning to some reliable resources to prepare Yale’s latest iteration for what was to come.

As a program, Yale has prided itself on come-from-behind victories and tight escapes. Shay’s first NCAA tournament team won three consecutive overtime games late in the 2012 season. Three years later, Yale earned the Ivy League’s automatic berth with a one-goal defeat of Princeton in the conference final. The 2017 Bulldogs’ final five games were decided by a goal.

Even three years ago, fresh off a national title, six of Yale’s 19 games were one-goal affairs (with four decided in overtime).

So who better than to relay how vital those tight contests were to the program’s identity than the guys who played in those close games in the past?

“We did Zoom call with those guys and had them regale them with their favorite wins they’ve had over certain opponents in certain years when we had to manufacture a game where we overachieved,” Shay said. “Maybe a team we weren’t supposed to beat or weren’t supposed to play with. Knowing you grow up in this program organically watching it when you’re not necessarily out there as a first-year. When it’s your turn, you’ve seen it. These guys haven’t seen it yet.”

It’s not just the freshmen with minimal college experience. The class that enrolled in the fall of 2020 didn’t have the chance to play last season, and the Bulldogs played in only four games in 2020 before the pandemic ended the season.

But they’ve also been needed. Some, like Leo Johnson (19 goals, five assists), seemed likely to contribute immediately. But Chris Lyons was plugged into the lineup after four games as Yale sought to add a player who effectively carries the ball into the mix.

Lyons has responded with 15 goals and three assists in the last four games, including a six-goal outburst against Boston U. Throw in Brad Sharp (seven goals, eight assists), and three of the Bulldogs’ top four point-getters are first-year players entering Saturday’s trip to Dartmouth.

“The fact is those guys are really young, and our first and second midfield lines have a lot of freshmen on there as well because of injuries and other things,” Shay said. “I think it’s a testament to our older guys that are on the field or not on the field, that they’ve been able to help these guys work through it.”

Shay is optimistic there will be some additional help coming in the second half of the season. Midfielder Christian Cropp has only played in two games because of injury and is considered week to week. But there’s no getting around how much the Bulldogs will lean on guys navigating their first full Division I season.

They’ve all heard the stories from the guys who fueled Yale’s rise — but there’s also no substitute for the experience the Bulldogs have gathered over the last month and a half.

“To a certain extent, I think it helped a great deal,” Shay said of the alumni Zooms. “In some ways, it might have hurt. I think our guys maybe felt pressure to do exactly what those guys did. We’ve come from behind in some games and been down in a few and shown some mental toughness. I think we’re growing up as the year has gone on. I’m pleased with how it’s worked out, but it’s definitely something we’ve had to figure out on the fly.”