In the NCAA tournament it is paramount to start off every game strong. There are no second chances and there is no room for error. The women’s basketball team did exactly what it needed to do in the first and second rounds of the tourney, beating Babson College 77-54 and Emmanuel College by 39 points. With the wins, the Jeffs move on to the Sweet 16 and, because of the amazing season they’ve had, they will host the round of 16 and the round of eight.

“The games this weekend really showed us how good we can be when we are playing together as a team,” said sophomore forward Jaci Daigneault. “Every game someone different steps up, and different people score. That’s what makes us such a hard team to stop — we have so many different threats. I think we played really well this weekend but there is always room for improvement.”

Amherst began the first-round game against Babson with a 9-0 run and didn’t let up throughout the entire first half, at one point leading by 29 points. Ending the half with a 23-point advantage, the Jeffs had out-rebounded their opponents 21-12 and shot 46.9 percent from the floor. The stellar start allowed the Lord Jeff starters to get some rest in the second half and the players coming off the bench showed how deep the Amherst team is as the quality of play barely changed. Rookie guard Kim Fiorentino performed like a veteran, leading her team on offense with 13 points and grabbing five rebounds and two steals.

“In the first game we came out and hit shots. We had been making all the right passes in our previous games but we just knocked down the shots in that game,” said first-year point guard Shannon Finucane.

Still riding high from their win, the Jeffs prepared to face Emmanuel College the following day, playing for a spot in the Sweet 16. Whether because of nerves or because of heavy legs from playing the evening before, the contest got off to a sloppy start and each team had only scored six points in the first six minutes of the game. But when rookie Lem Atanga-McCormick came off the bench Amherst immediately began to take control and by the time the whistle blew for halftime the Jeffs led by 21 points. Atanga-McCormick scored 13 points in the first frame to lead all scorers. The Emmanuel squad looked outclassed in the second half and losing 76-37.

Atanga-McCormick finished the game with 17 points while Daigneault added 11 points and seven assists of her own. Fiorentino racked up five assists and stole the ball twice. Amherst shot a whopping 52.7 percent from the field in the game.

Now the team must turn its attention to Friday when they will host New York University for the round of 16 match-up. The Jeffs know they must be prepared both mentally and physically.

“We are going to use all of the lessons we’ve accumulated over this season to help us in the games to come,” said Daigneult of the team’s preparation. “Although being a little nervous can help sometimes, we are just going to play our game and focus on what needs to be done. I also think being at home definitely takes some of the nerves away because we are used to playing here, in front of our crowd, in our gym.”

Amherst must also ensure that they are not overconfident going into the next contest. Anything can happen in any game and the Jeffs must stay focused on the task at hand while playing ferocious defense and moving the ball on offense.

“Every game is completely different and at this point as you move ahead you know the teams progressively get better in each round,” said Finucane. “I think we are confident in ourselves and in how we play at home and that should help us this upcoming weekend.”