CAC and one non-conference game, the team's performance against 13th-ranked conference rival Middlebury College on Saturday highlighted its potential.
The week started with a game against Western New England College (WNEC) on Wednesday evening. The game was supposed to take place at Amherst, but the venue changed to WNEC's turf because of weather and sloppy fields at Amherst.
Amherst held strong against WNEC-6-1 on the season-during the opening quarter. After the first 15 minutes, the Jeffs were only down by one goal as the score stood at 2-1. During the second quarter, the Golden Bears broke out and outscored the Jeffs 6-0, finishing the half with a score of 8-1. The lead was too wide for Amherst to close during the second half, and the final score was 14-6.
Junior attacker Derek Cherney and rising star sophomore attacker Will Ferrer netted two goals apiece for Amherst. Midfielders T.J. Jackson '08 and Rob Madden '07 also each scored once. Senior quad-captain midfielder Kevin Boova dished out a pair of assists during the game. First-year goalie Matt Pietroforte spotted seven saves during the defeat. Madden '07 came up big with six ground balls, while attacker Chris Hofmann '07 got five.
"Against WNEC, our moments of greatness were overshadowed by generally lackadaisical lax," said defender Brett Larson '08. "We played well in the first quarter, but we weren't able to put together a full game," added quad-captain Sean Murray.
On Saturday, back on their home field, the Jeffs pulled it together and played a "full game." Against Middlebury-3-1 in NESCAC the teams remained scoreless in the first quarter. During the second frame, after the Panthers opened the score, Ferrer and rookie attacker Brett Miller responded with two unassisted goals to take the lead at 2-1. But by the break, Middlebury tied the score.
In the third quarter, two quad-captains, Murray and Boova, helped the Jeffs gain an advantage. However, Middlebury capitalized on an Amherst penalty at the end of the quarter and tied the score again.
The Jeffs and Panthers traded scores before Amherst pulled ahead one last time off Ferrer's second goal of the period and third of the game. With 3:10 left on the clock, the Panthers tied the score and brought the game into overtime.
Pietroforte came up with 19 saves during the game. However, it was after his last save 1:07 into the sudden-death OT that a Panther picked up the deflected shot and nailed it in, sealing a Middlebury victory at 7-6. With the loss, Amherst fell to 2-5 overall.
During the game, senior defender Andrew Wilcox snatched up six ground balls and won six face-offs. Midfielder Chris Mottau '08 scooped up five ground balls, while defensemen David Beck '07 and rookie Chris Fitzpatrick grabbed four each.
"Against Middlebury, we had our best game yet in terms of executing well and playing passionately," said Larson. "Sadly the last goal scored went against us."
"Even with such a close game against Middlebury, we need to keep our learning and maturity curve up," said Madden. "We can not afford to not get better every chance that we get-whether it be practice or in games. We have a very talented team."
Amherst is 2-5 for the season and 1-4 in the NESCAC. Four of their losses-to Middlebury, WNEC, Tufts and Bates-have come at the hands of top 20 teams. The remaining loss to Trinity College was an 8-7 decision. Cherney leads the team in points with 10 goals and six assists. Ferrer is close behind with nine goals and five assists, and is 10th in NESCAC for assists per game. Wilcox '06 has a team-high 26 groundballs this season, followed by Hofmann and Mottau with 14 apiece. Wilcox has also won 16 face-offs on the season thus far. Pietroforte has stopped 86 shots for the season and boasts a 12 saves per game average, placing him at fourth in the NESCAC.
Amherst lost 7-6 to 20th-ranked Endicott on Monday. And looks ahead to NESCAC foe Wesleyan on Saturday, who is currently ranked 10th in the nation and is 8-1 for the season; its only loss to current NESCAC leader Bates.
NESCAC Notes
With five teams ranked in the top 20, the NESCAC is hot with competition. Leading the conference is Bates with a 9-0 record. This week they knocked off Colby 9-7. However, the Mules took a game from Trinity College in a close 8-7 contest. Wesleyan brought home a 2-0 week with wins against Conneticut College and Bowdoin. The Polar Bears picked up a win off from the Jumbos, while Tufts later found victory against Williams.