Rainy weather was not enough to sully Amherst's play as the Jeffs dictated the pace of the entire game against non-conference match-up Springfield. The Jeffs fired four shots within the first 20 minutes of play to rattle the Pride's defense. On a fast break at the 23rd minute mark, junior striker Katie Coffey found senior forward Amy Armstrong in scoring position. Armstrong found the back of the net for her fifth goal in six games this season.
Three minutes later, senior tri-captain midfielder Lesley Pruzansky found forward Stephanie Yesnik '09 to secure the Jeffs lead at 2-0. Although Amherst continued to hound the Springfield defense- totalling 19 shots-the game concluded with a 2-0 shutout. Springfield pulled off only four shots during the game, forcing tri-captain goaltender Piper Crowell to make only one save in goal. First-year goalkeeper Lili Ferguson also guarded the net for 12 minutes.
Amherst again came up victorious in their second away game of the week, this time at Smith. The Jeffs pressured the defense right off the bat and scored early into regulation. Midfielder Natalie Ferraiolo '08 netted her first goal this season, a low shot through traffic that found the bottom-right corner of the net.
Off a corner kick from first-year midfielder Meg Murphy, Coffey sent in a hard shot to the same corner from 20 yards out, putting the Jeffs on top at the close of the first half, 2-0.
Shortly into the second stanza, Armstrong snatched the ball from a loose-footed Smith defender and slipped it past the keeper to give Amherst a solid lead. The attack put in fresh legs to keep hammering the defense. Sophomore midfielder Alana Darling was inches from another Amherst tally off a shot from 30-yards out, but her shot rattled the crossbar.
With 10 minutes left in regulation, Smith converted a penalty shot to bring the score to 3-1. However, it was too late for a comeback and Amherst took home the win. Crowell collected two saves for the win and Ferguson was un-tested during her time in goal.
"This past week was tough with two midweek games," said Pruzansky. "But we played really well at Springfield and though we played somewhat of an off game at Smith, we managed to get the job done."
After a busy week, Amherst was home on Saturday against NESCAC rival Tufts. The hard-fought game ended in a 2-2 tie after double overtime.
The first half of the intense conference match-up was scoreless. Tufts outshot Amherst 7-2 during the first 45 minutes of play, but a minute into the second frame, senior forward Jenny Muller found a narrow path through the Jumbo defense to Coffey. Coffey pulled off the shot, bringing the Jeffs to a 1-0 lead.
However, Tufts answered back and tied the score. Amherst went back to the attacking end with force, coming up with some near goals. In the 65th minute of play, Murphy took control of an Amherst corner kick, knocking in a lower right corner shot that slipped off the Tufts keeper's fingers.
Amherst remained strong on the offensive end and looked like they were going to hold off the Jumbo attack on the defense, until Tufts got off an unstoppable shot bringing the score to 2-2.
Hope rose that the Jeffs would retake the lead in the game's waning minutes. However, the teams were unable to split the tie and went into overtime. The Jeff defense prevented the Jumbos from scoring again, but Amherst came up short on the offensive, despite three good looks on goal. Overtime ran out and the game closed with a 2-2 tie. Crowell collected six saves on the game. Amherst stands 5-0-1 overall and 2-0-1 in NESCAC after the game.
"The outcome of the game was definitely not what we wanted, especially since we were up one with seven minutes to go," said sophomore midfielder Kate Bentley.
Looking forward, Pruzansky says, "[Today] is a huge day for us. Wheaton [College] is a very talented team and we have yet to beat them. They knocked us out of NCAAs my freshmen year, and so this game means a lot to the seniors."
The Jeffs will meet Wheaton this afternoon on the road.
NESCAC Notes
Undefeated Middlebury collected two wins this week, against Keene State University and conference rival Wesleyan University in a 1-0 game. Williams College beat Bowdoin College 3-1, but Bowdoin handled its Maine rival Bates College in a 3-1 victory. Colby College handed Trinity College its fourth conference loss in a close 1-0 game.