In addition, the Jeffs faced Clark University on Tuesday evening, and despite their efforts, fell to the Cougars 59-43. Amherst has still yet to face a NESCAC challenger as it tries to shake the early season blues against non-conference squads.
Before the weekend's tournament, Amherst hosted Keene State College. The Jeffs entered the game with hopes of balancing their record but ended up falling to the Owls in another narrow loss. The game ended 58-51 and the Jeffs dropped to 1-3 overall.
Amherst came out strong and kept Keene State guessing with a balanced offense. Even though the Jeffs kept the lead for the first 10 minutes, the Owls gained control of the scoreboard at the end of the first half. Keene State used that momentum in the second half, coming out strong and building a 12-point lead. The Jeffs were never able to catch up, but they played tough and kept the score close to the end.
Senior forward Julie Smith achieved her first double-double of the season. Smith led Amherst with 13 points off perfect 6-6 shooting and 11 boards in the loss.
Sophomore guard Shaina Pollack '08 followed Smith offensively with 11 points. Senior co-captain and guard Krissy Morin '06 played a well-rounded game, adding eight points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals. Rookie forward Yasmine Harik '09 helped the Jeffs with eight points, five rebounds and three steals.
The Jeffs entered the Classic with a record of 1-3 and left the tournament 2-4. Their first loss of the tournament and fourth loss of the season was brought on by Western New England College (WNEC). Junior guard Jenny Muller led the Jeffs with 10 points, two rebounds and two assists. Senior co-captain and forward Katie Latham notched eight points and grabbed five boards while Morin fed three assists.
Despite several strong Jeff efforts, WNEC banked on Amherst's 15-for-47 shooting and 20 turnovers to take control of the game, while playing solid basketball all the way around. The Golden Bears out-rebounded the Jeffs 33-25 while shooting almost 42 percent with a 7-16 three-point performance.
When a team is in a groove, it takes something momentous to break the rhythm. The Jeffs can thank the standout playing of Smith for snapping their rut with her performance against Westfield State. Smith's stellar showing landed her all-tournament honors and led the Jeffs to their second win of the season, 64-46. Smith tallied a career-high 23 points-16 of which were in the first half–and eight boards. She shot 9-10 from the field and polished off her performance with a 5-5 streak from the free throw line.
Sophomore guards Stephanie Reiff and Shaina Pollack added 11 points each, while Morin's versatility gave the Jeffs five points, six rebounds, four assists and a steal. Harik had a career performance as well, leading the Jeffs with nine boards and adding three steals.
Defense made the difference for Amherst, as they forced Westfield State to shoot below 30 percent. "We knew it was a must-win game for us, so everyone really just stepped up their intensity and got it done on the defensive end, which helped the whole tone and tempo of the game," said Latham.
At the mercy of Amherst's tough defense, the Owls committed a total of 16 turnovers, while the Jeffs grasped the win with 29 defensive rebounds.
Unfortunately, the Jeffs were unable to carry their momentum from the Westfield game into their contest on Tuesday night against Clark. The Cougars advanced to 7-0 on the season. Muller led Amherst with 13 points and three assists and Latham scored 11 points and grabbed a game-high eight boards.
"We executed our game plan relatively well but because of little mistakes we weren't able to pull out the win," said Pollack.
"It's still so early in our season and despite having some early losses, we've seen how well we're capable of playing," says Latham, commenting on the overall sentiment among the Jeffs. "Now we're just looking to bring that same confidence and intensity every time we step onto the floor." The next challenge for the Jeffs will come at home on Friday at 7 p.m. against Skidmore College.
NESCAC Notes
Amherst's first NESCAC match-up will be against Williams College during Interterm. The Ephs currently boast a 5-2 record and the reigning NESCAC Player of the Week, Colleen Hession. Hession is the eighth woman in Williams's history to accumulate 1,000 points in her career. Bates College poses a big threat in the NESCAC, but has already suffered two non-conference losses to Brandeis University and the University of Southern Maine. Bowdoin College also fell to Southern Maine, the Polar Bears' first loss of the season. Trinity College is currently on a four-game winning streak. The Bantams improved their record to 4-2 and, like Amherst, recently defeated Westfield State. Middlebury College currently touts an impressive 6-1 record and should provide exciting competition for the Jeffs.