The women's golf team finished the fall season firing on all cylinders at the Wellesley Fall Invitational this past weekend. Though trailing Williams College after the first round, Amherst came back by shooting a second round 334 to beat Williams by three strokes-a comeback that, around the clubhouse at least, has been compared to Justin Leonard and the '99 Ryder Cup Team triumph. The kind of consistency the Jeffs showed this weekend bodes well for the spring season, when Amherst can take a shot at the NESCAC championship.

With no Amherst golfer shooting over 90, the team was once again led by rookie Hayley Milbourn, who seems to have regained her stroke. After a solid first round of 81, she raised her play with a 74, the lowest round of the tournament. Fellow first-year Alissa Korpi, continuing to impress, finished the weekend tied for 12th (84-88-172). Alex Chang-Graham '10 (87-86-173) improved on her performance at Williams to finish tied for 14th. Kinne Schwartz '10 and captain Ali Berman '08 continued their consistent play, finishing 16th and 18th, respectively (88-87-175, 89-87-176).

Other schools in the field included Wellesley College atop the tables with a 333-334, finishing +91 as a team. Williams finished just three strokes behind Amherst shooting 339-338 to finish +101. Mount Holyoke College finished at a distant fourth, 18 strokes behind Williams, and Middlebury College was an even more distant fifth, 17 strokes behind Holyoke.

"I think the greatest achievement of the Wellesley tournament is the fact that we beat Williams for the second time in a row," said Berman. "And in three out of our four tournaments we had top-five finishes."

Going into the offseason the team's chemistry and ability to play consistently from the lowest scorer to the highest is a critical edge that the Jeffs have gained over most teams in the NESCAC. Though Wellesley was able to top Amherst on the Blue's home course, their scores showed a wide range, from Kim Eaton's 153 to Melanie Matsuo's 186. The same can be said for Williams with a range of 34 from lowest to highest. With a range of only 21 between Amherst's scores this weekend, the team looks to improve in the offseason and contend legitimately from spots one to five.

What a season it was. Amherst's youthful talent bodes well for years to come under the leadership of captain Ali Berman '08. It's always great to look back on a successful season, but luckily for these fine ball-strikers they can look forward to dominating the NESCAC in the spring.