Around the Herd: Dec. 4 to Dec. 11 in Athletics

Women’s Squash

This week, the women’s squash team faced off against Dartmouth College and Cornell University.

On Friday, the Mammoth’s perfect streak came to a close against Dartmouth. Three of the nine matches were extended to three sets, including Kristen Daniel ’28 who won in the fourth spot. Amherst’s other win came in the fifth spot from Brigid Brandon ’28. Dartmouth prevailed in the end with a 7-2 victory over the Mammoths.

Back at home, Amherst faced another Ivy League opponent in No. 9 ranked Cornell on Dec. 8. The Big Red proved a tough opponent taking all nine matches. In the third spot, Alex Brown ’26 fought hard to win the first set as the Cornell player took the rest. Brandon put up a valiant effort taking her match to five sets and 42 minutes in the fifth spot.

Amherst will finish the calendar year with a 3-2 record and continue their season in the new year against Bowdoin College on Jan. 8.

Men’s Squash

The men’s squash team traveled to play the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Dartmouth College before facing Cornell University at home this week.

In Cambridge on Wednesday, the Mammoths endured a nail-biter against MIT. With two five-set victories from Fares Khairy ’28 and Grady Herbert ’26, Amherst demonstrated their stamina. Another win from Joseph Toth ’27 gave the Mammoths a 5-4 triumph.

Amherst’s unbeaten streak was spoiled by the Big Green on Friday. Toth and Khairy both won their first sets but were ultimately bested by Dartmouth players. Continuing his perfect 4-0 record, Herbert gave the Mammoths their only victory of the day as they lost 8-1.

Cornell proved a tougher opponent against Amherst, winning all nine matches on Sunday. At the eighth and ninth spots, Jesse Brew ’26 and Herbert both won their first sets, but Cornell took the remainder of the sets in the game, giving the Mammoths their first loss at home.

The team will take a brief hiatus in play until Jan. 8 with a match-up against NESCAC rival Bowdoin College.

Men’s Hockey

This week the men’s hockey team faced two conference games against Middlebury College and Williams College.

On Friday night, Dec. 6, the Panthers came out strong against the Mammoths. Goaltender Connor Leslie ’25 was forced to make a save against a breakaway before Middlebury capitalized off an odd-man rush to get the early lead. Amherst responded promptly when a shot from Ben Kuzma ’25 tied the game 59 seconds later. The second period saw a tip-in from Matt Vander Vort ’27 and a goal from Bobby Luca ’25 — following a successful five-on-three penalty kill — to extend the Mammoths’ lead by two. A third-period goal by Ben Cook ’28 and Leslie’s 22 saves throughout the game gave Amherst a final victory of 4-1.

Less than a day later, on Dec. 7, the Mammoths returned to Orr Rink to face rival Williams College. Despite outshooting the Ephs 28-9 in the first two periods, Amherst was down 3-1 going into the third. A goal from Max Thiessen ’25 kept the Mammoths within one. It was not until the last minute of regulation that Amherst found the equalizer when Luca scored from behind the net, shooting the puck off Williams’ goaltender. Overtime was equally dramatic, with Josh Burke ’26 scoring the game-winner in the last 2.8 seconds. These two buzzer-beaters delivered Amehrst a thrilling 4-3 win.

On Jan. 4, the team will face Endicott College on home ice.

Women’s Track and Field

In their season debut this weekend, the women’s track and field team competed in both the Colyear-Danville Season Opener and the Wesleyan Winter Invitational.

At the Colyear-Danville meet — hosted by Boston College — on Saturday, Dec. 7, many Mammoths garnered qualifying marks. Piper Lentz ’27 finished as the fastest Division III runner with a time of 5:06 in the mile. In the 800m, Zoë Marcus ’28 placed 13th overall and first in Division III athletes with Hannah Adhikari ’28 placing 20th overall. Runs from Julia Schor ’25 and Audrey Seeger ’28 also qualified in the 3000m event.

That same Saturday at the Wesleyan meet, four Mammoths qualified in the 5000m; Flora Biro ’28 won second place with a time of 17:26, with teammates Hannah Stephenson ’28, Addison McGoey ’28, and Allison Lounsbury ’27 in the third, fourth, and fifth spots, respectively. With a mark of 3.25m, Payton Sorensen ’26 earned a New England qualifying mark in the pole vault.

The team will continue their season at the Middlebury Winter Invitational on Jan. 17 and 18.

Men’s Track and Field

The men’s track and field team also opened their season this weekend at the Colyear-Danville Season Opener and the Wesleyan Winter Invitational.

On Saturday Dec. 7 at the Colyear-Danville Season Opener, four Mammoths qualified for the New England Division III Championships in Boston. Ben Davis ’27 ran the fastest in the 800m out of all Division III runners with a time of 1:52. Amherst had four more qualifiers from the 3000m, with performances from Henry Dennen ’27, Parker Boyle ’28, and Nick Edwards-Levin ’25.

The same day, another Mammoth achieved qualifying marks at the Wesleyan meet in Middletown, Connecticut; in the pole vault, Alec Kuzyk ’28 placed second overall with a mark of 4.30m.

On Jan. 17 and 18, the team will compete at the Middlebury Winter Invitational.

Women’s Basketball

The women’s basketball team faced Colby-Sawyer College and Gwynedd Mercy University this past week.

In their first game on Dec. 4, the Mammoths easily took the lead against Colby-Sawyer College. Amherst began with a 9-0 start with points from Kori Barach ’25, Sylvia Liddle ’26, and Elizabeth Cain ’28. Colby-Sawyer eventually got on the board with a layup and free throw, making the score 14-3 in Amherst’s favor. However, Colby-Sawyer’s scoring ended there as the Mammoths’ stellar defense locked the Chargers down for the rest of the first quarter. Amherst garnered eight unanswered points to close the first quarter, scoring 22-3. Amherst kept their lead comfortably throughout the game, even shutting out Colby-Sawyer in the fourth quarter. The standout players from this game were Reagan Pahl ’27 and Barach. Pahl scored 11 points and recorded an impressive five steals. Barach gathered nine rebounds and 16 points, leading the team in both categories. The game ended 67-28, giving Amherst a comfortable win over Colby-Sawyer.

On Dec. 7 Amherst and Gwynedd Mercy maintained a close game through the first quarter, tied 11-11 entering the second quarter. Amherst started gaining a lead after three consecutive buckets made by Cain, scoring 20-14. In the third quarter, the Mammoths took off with a dominant display. Led by Brielle Renwick ’27 and Barach, the team scored 21 points to the Griffins’ mere four. Given their massive lead, Amherst cruised to the game’s end against Gwynedd Mercy. Cain led the team in scoring, amassing 15 points, five rebounds, and four steals. Maya Cwalina ’25 had a highlight performance, rebounding eight times and blocking thrice. Amherst took the win against Gwynedd Mercy, scoring 56-34.

The team’s next game is against Bethel University on Dec. 28.

Men’s Basketball

This week, the men’s basketball team competed against Westfield State and Mount Saint Mary College.

Amherst started strong against Westfield this past Thursday, getting an 8-0 lead through points by Bobby Sommers ’25, Chris Hammond ’26, and C.J. Mitchell ’25. The first half was full of back-and-forth play from both sides, although the Mammoths prevented the Owls from taking the lead at any point. The second half reflected this pattern, with the closest moment for Westfield State coming at the 13th minute. The Owls had just hit two free throws and were only down by four points. However, a three-pointer from Hammond and a fastbreak play by Mitchell solidified the separation between the two sides. Sommers had a superb performance, dropping 22 points and eight steals. Mitchell scored 13 points, the second most on the team. Hammond led the team with six assists and garnered 11 points. Amherst came out with the win over Westfield State with a score of 77-59.

Mitchell scored a three-pointer 13 seconds into the Dec. 7 game against Mount Saint Mary, setting the pace early for the Mammoths. Mount Saint Mary kept up with Amherst until two three-pointers from Mitchell and a layup from Noah Helmke ’25 gave the Mammoths an 11-point lead. Amherst dominated throughout the game, putting the Knights into an inescapable deficit. The largest difference between the two teams during the game was a 47-point lead for the Mammoths. The highlight players in the game were Sommers, Mitchell, and Will Scherer ’25. Sommers finished the contest with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and four steals. Mitchell had three steals and 18 points, hitting six three-pointers for all his points. Despite only playing 12 minutes, Scherer blocked the Knights a team-high four times. Amherst dominated the game against Mount Saint Mary, scoring 88-47 in Amherst’s favor.

The team’s next game is against the University of Maine-Farmington on Jan. 1.

Men’s Soccer

The men’s soccer team traveled to Las Vegas for the NCAA Final Four match against Middlebury College on Dec. 5.

Having tied Middlebury earlier in the season, the Mammoths came out with a message for the Panthers. Within the first nine minutes of the match, Amherst took four shots at goal. In the first half both sides had two corner kicks, although Amherst had seven shots to Middlebury’s mere two. Most of the first half was fairly uneventful; the main highlight was a series of fouls that led to yellow cards for Aidan Curtis ’25 and Michael Cherico ’28. Amherst was the first to break the deadlock in the second half, as Simon Kalinauskas 25 scored off a corner kick from Jacob Dinzeo ’28. Middlebury responded quickly, however, as the Panthers scored only three minutes later. The game remained fairly close until the 66th minute when the referee awarded the Mammoths a penalty after a foul on Niall Murphy ’25. Mohammed Nuhu ’27 stepped up to take the penalty and easily delivered the ball into the back of the net, giving Amherst the lead. Middlebury attempted to regain control of the game but never managed to do so. The Panthers’ efforts only led to three yellow cards for their team and two saves for Max Landa ’25. The game ended 2-1 in Amherst’s favor, sending the Mammoths to the NCAA Div. III National Championship Game.

Women’s Swim

The women’s swimming and diving team competed in the Jayden Szkirka Memorial Championships this past Friday and Saturday from Saturday, Dec. 6-7.

On the first day of competition, the team had several standout performances. Lucy Smith ’27 tied for first place in the 50-yard freestyle, while Sabrina Victor ’28 finished fifth. In the 200-yard individual medley, Megan Lee ’25 placed first, with Victor and Diane Koo ’26 finishing fourth and fifth respectively. The Mammoths concluded on the first day in first place with 577.2 points.

On the second day of the competition, Amherst continued their dominance. Paige Arnold ’27 took home first place in the 100-yard butterfly and 100-yard freestyle, as well as second place in the 200-yard freestyle. Lee finished first in the 200-yard freestyle and second in the 200-yard butterfly. In the one-meter dive, Donna Zhang ’26 claimed first place with Sydney Bluestein ’25 finishing right behind her. In the three-meter dive, Zhang and Bluestein traded places as Bluestein earned first place and Zhang received second place honors. Amherst finished first overall in the competition with 972.5 points.

The team’s next meet is against Babson College on Jan. 3.

Men’s Swim

The men’s swimming and diving team traveled to Wesleyan University to participate in the Jayden Szkirka Memorial Championships on Dec. 6 and 7.

Gabriele Lunardi ’25 claimed victory in the 500-yard freestyle to start the first day of competition for the Mammoths. Tor Metelmann ’25 was the runner-up in the 200-yard individual medley, while Henry Liu ’27 finished third overall. The Amherst A team finished second in the 200-yard freestyle relay and third in the 400-yard medley relay. The Mammoths had 574.7 points at the end of the opening day, placing first overall.

Amherst kept placing high throughout the competition in the second and third sessions. Jack Goepfrich ’28 placed second in the 200-yard freestyle. Tyler Palm ’28 won both the one-meter and three-meter dives. Fynlan Nadel ’26 finished second in the 200-yard butterfly with Teddy Sun ’28 finishing right behind. In the 200-yard backstroke, Andrew Yuen ’25 placed first and second place went to Jonah Luetke ’26. The team overall finished second in the championships, only 87 points behind the United States Coast Guard Academy.

On Jan. 3, the team will face off against Babson College.