Although Williams was undefeated and seeded first in the tournament and in the country, as opposed to Amherst's fifth place ranking, the Jeffs still believed they had a chance to win.
In preparation for the game, they tried to adjust to Williams' powerful offense and slow the game down by having Mike York '04 take all the throw-ins. "We thought we had a good chance, especially since we were still scoreless at halftime," said Co-captain Steve Squillario '01, "But once they scored, the momentum shifted."
Goalkeeper Bill Orum '02 deflected numerous scoring chances by the Ephs, especially stepping up and stopping a flurry of shots at the end of the first half.
Then, in the 56th minute, Williams tallied their first goal.
In a controversial play, Williams senior Michael Cortese was taken down at the top of the box, leading to a penalty shot by Williams midfielder Josef Powell. Cortese and an Amherst defender both went for a 50-50 ball near the top of the box, and when they made simultaneous contact Cortese went down.
Powell took advantage of the call, and on the penalty shot he blasted the ball past Orum into the lower right corner of the goal to give Williams a 1-0 lead.
After the first goal the Ephs' seized the momentum and capitalized with their second goal.
Four minutes later Will Ouimet headed a corner kick by Alex Blake past Orum just inside the goal. It was Ouimet's first career goal, and Williams continued to dominate for the rest of the game with the final score as 2-0."
Their offense is extremely explosive," said Squillario. "They pass extremely well on the ground and have a quick counterattack."
Amherst also had a strong performance Saturday, despite the loss. John Holodnak '03 played a solid game at the back, while Franklin Perry '04 created many scoring opportunities up front.
In their previous match on October 31, the Jeffs defeated Tufts University in the first round of the NESCAC Tournament.
Ryan Goodband '02 tallied the only Jeff goal when he headed in a corner kick from midfielder Piercarlo Valdesolo '03 past Tufts goalkeeper Steve McDermid. This goal, scored with only three minutes left in the game, lifted the Jeffs to the victory, and into the semifinals, with a final score of 1-0.
The low scoring on the day could be attributed to the tight defense of both teams and to the rainy conditions on Tufts' Kraft Field, which made play difficult.
There were few scoring attempts made in the first half. The only threatening shot against Amherst, made by Tufts' Brad Stitchberry, was deflected by Orum, who made three saves on the day for his second shutout of the season against Tufts, and his fifth of the year.
Amherst's only other quality scoring chance came just minutes before Goodband's goal. Vivian Johnson '04 put a shot on goal, but McDermid made a diving save to keep the game scoreless. He had five saves on the day.
After the scoreless first half, both teams ratcheted up their offensive attacks in the second half. Orum had to make two crucial saves on wide open shots by Tufts striker Garrett Dale to keep the score knotted at zero.
Amherst had eight shots on goal in the match, while Tufts had five. They both had five corner kicks. With the loss, Tufts concluded their season with an 8-5-2 record.
After the disappointing loss to Williams, Amherst has accepted an at large berth in the ECAC Tournament.