Kicking off a brand new season, the Amherst women’s soccer team hopes to build a winning momentum. Last year, the Jeffs started the season with a sixteen-game winning streak, so there will be high hopes for similar success in 2009.
Additionally, the team is looking forward to competing for a conference and national title. In the 2008 season, the Amherst team tallied a 7-0-2 conference record to claim the No. 2 seed in the NESCAC Tournament. They eventually advanced to the finals and fell to the No. 1 seed Williams College (3-2) in an overtime thriller. The Lord Jeffs also received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament and trounced the competition to enter the Round of 8. Despite outshooting William Smith College 16-8, Amherst suffered a 1-0 defeat in the double-overtime match.
The loss of seven seniors, however, will impact the starting lineup this season. The class of 2009 was an integral part of the Jeffs’ success last year. Forwards Stephanie Yesnik ’09 and Julia Cummings ’09, as well as midfielders Natalie Ferraiolo ’09 and Alanna Darling ’09, spearheaded the team’s offense. Darling was also the only NESCAC player who earned ESPN Magazine’s Academic All-American Second Team honors in 2008. Kate Bentley ’09 and Kate Moriarty ’09 were talented defenders who kept the pressure on their opponents.
“I think for now we’re just taking things one step at a time, not trying to get ahead of ourselves. I think that everyone is feeling confident despite losing a lot of good players with last year’s graduating class,” said junior forward Kyla Woodhouse.
Despite the losses of key veteran players, the women’s soccer team remains confident. Senior tri-captain Meg Murphy is a top returning player for Amherst. For the 2008-09 season, Murphy was named NESCAC Player of the Year and ranked second in the conference in goals (13) and points (31). Junior forwards Jackie Hirsch and Kyla Woodhouse will also have active roles in the Jeffs’ offense. In addition, sophomore Allie Horwitz returns after an impressive rookie year. Horwitz led the NESCAC in goals-against average (0.48) and save percentage (0.887) last season.
“We’ve been working really hard preparing for the season,” said Murphy. “We’ve been playing together a lot to determine which players should play where and which players work well together. We’re looking for some of the younger players to step up and take over the starting positions left open by last season’s seniors.”
She added, “Everyone on the team is very excited for the season. We have a lot of talent this year and we’re definitely looking to build on last season’s success.”
The Jeffs will experience their first test of the season against NESCAC rival Bowdoin College on Saturday, Sept. 12, on Hitchcock Field.
“Preseason is a tough time for everyone, physically and mentally,” commented Hirsch ’11, “but we’ve all come into it in great shape and will finish pre-season ready to take on our opponents.”
Head Coach Jennifer Hughes summed up the Jeffs’ attitude:
“We graduated six starters from last year’s team, so we have some big shoes to fill. However, we have a ton of talent this year, and I’m confident that the players will rise to the challenge. We’re excited to get going. Watch out Bowdoin!”