Around the Herd: Jan. 29 to Feb. 5 in Athletics

Men’s Squash

This week, the men’s squash team battled against NESCAC foes Williams, Middlebury, and Wesleyan.

Last Wednesday, Jan. 29, the Mammoths faced a tough opponent in the rival Ephs. Amherst’s only win came from Graeme Herbert ’28, who won a four-set match at the eighth spot. Grady Herbert ’26 and Fares Khairy ’28 played 49 and 53 minutes, respectively, in their close five-set matches. Ultimately, the No. 16 ranked Mammoths fell 8-1 at Williams.

In Middlebury, Vermont, on Saturday, Feb. 1, Amherst battled in another difficult matchup against the Panthers. At the fifth spot, Khairy gave the Mammoths their first win, taking the last set after over an hour of play. William Okurowski ’26 also won his match 3-2, overcoming a two-set deficit in the ninth spot. Middlebury came out on top with a final score of 7-2.

The next day on home courts, Amherst found more success against the Cardinals. After a loss in the first spot, the Mammoths went on to take the remaining matches, all in straight sets. Graeme Herbert ’28 delivered the fastest win, taking the fifth spot in just 16 minutes, while Render Ford ’28 earned his first collegiate win for Amherst in the ninth spot. The 8-1 victory over Wesleyan improves the Mammoths to a 9-6 record.

The team will face St. Lawrence University next, on Friday, Feb. 7.

Women’s Squash

The women’s squash team traveled to play Williams and Middlebury before facing Wesleyan at home this week.

The Mammoths started strong against the Ephs on Wednesday, Jan. 29, with four-set wins from Tanmai Pathak ’25 and Quincy Cline ’27 in the first and second spots. In the next two matches, Alex Brown ’26 and Brigid Brandon ’28 both won in three-set matches. At the seventh spot, Morgan Chaudhary ’26 overcame a two-set deficit to win in five. These battles led to Amherst’s 6-3 victory over Williams.

On Saturday, Feb. 1 — against the Panthers — the Mammoths continued their strong performance on the road. Brandon and Kristen Daniel ’25 at the fourth and fifth spots, respectively, both won their matches in straight sets. At the third spot, Brown managed an impressive comeback victory after losing the first two sets. Clara Dawn ’28 also won her match in five sets in the ninth spot. In the end, Amherst secured a 6-3 win against Middlebury.

The Mammoths continued their momentum against the Cardinals on the Davenport Squash Courts the next day, Feb. 2. Amherst swept, taking all nine matches and winning eight matches 3-0. With a win at the ninth spot, Suraiya Khan Suri ’27 remains undefeated this season. The 9-0 victory over Wesleyan extends the Mammoths’ win streak to four games.

This Friday, Feb. 7, the team will look to continue their success against St. Lawrence University.

Women’s Hockey

This week, the No. 3-ranked women’s hockey team faced off against Bowdoin in a double-header on home ice.

On Friday night, the Mammoths took an early lead against the No. 9-ranked Polar Bears; Cara Mancini ’27 intercepted the puck, then scored off the faceoff just five minutes into the game. With less than two minutes left in the first, Ayla Abban ’28 doubled Amherst’s lead with an assist from Maeve Reynolds ’26. In the second period, a pass from Abban led to a backhand goal from Natalie Fu ’27. A key block from Gretchen Dann ’26 and saves from goaltender Natalie Stott ’26 fended off Bowdoin’s 6-on-4 advantage late into the third. The final score of 3-0 for the Mammoths earned Stott her 31st career shutout in 71 career games.

Facing off against the Polar Bears again the next day, Feb 2, the team hosted their annual Pink in the Rink Fundraiser in support of the local nonprofit Cancer Connection. The Mammoths — donning pink jerseys — scored in the first five minutes into the second period after Bea Flynn ’28 buried a goal off a rebounded shot by Alyssa Xu ’25. Extending the lead just 10 minutes later, Xu tucked the puck into the net off an assist from Dann. Amherst’s third goal came from Reynolds who scored with less than 10 seconds into the game after Bowdoin pulled their goaltender. The 3-0 win marks the team’s 10th straight victory over the Polar Bears.

The team will play another NESCAC rival in Colby on Friday, Feb. 7.

Men’s Hockey

The men’s hockey team traveled to play Trinity College and Wesleyan University this week.

Against the Bantams on Friday, Jan. 31, the Mammoths were able to kill off two early penalties in the first 10 minutes. Trinity tallied a goal first, scoring on a 2-on-1 just moments later. Despite Amherst’s early offensive pressure in the second period, the Bantams regained possession to double their lead. In the third, Trinity continued to find the back of the net, scoring thrice in 15 minutes. A pass from Magnus Gadowsky ’28 in the last minute of play found Zachary Murray ’26 who buried the loose puck into the goal to make the final score 5-1 for Trinity.

The next day in Middletown, Connecticut, the Mammoths found themselves with an early deficit as the Cardinals scored in the first four minutes. Less than 15 seconds later, a redirection by Josh Burke ’26 off an initial shot from Ben Cook ’28 allowed the Mammoths to tie the game. A few minutes later, Ben Kuzma ’25 scored off a pass from Andrew Carmody ’26. Amherst’s 2-0 lead was extended halfway into the first period when Bobby Luca ’25 deflected a shot from Cook. Wesleyan responded quickly, scoring twice to even the score by the end of the first period. In the second period, a pass from Oliver Flynn ’27 set up Kuzma to net his second of the game. Amherst maintained possession for most of the third but only scored off an empty net goal by Ryan Corcoran ’26 that solidified the Mammoths’ 5-3 victory.

On Friday, Feb. 7, the 8-9-1 team will face Bowdoin on the Orr Rink.

Men’s Basketball

Filled with NESCAC games against Colby and Bowdoin, the men’s basketball team split their weekend, registering one win and one loss. Up north in Maine for the weekend, their first game took place in Waterville on Friday, Jan. 31, against Colby. The Mammoths’ strong 35-point half carried them into halftime. However, the Mules could not be counted out. Matching this show of force, Colby added 35 points of their own in the second half, leveling the score at 65-65 by the end of regulation and sending the game into overtime. The Mules got off to a hot start in overtime and never looked back. Battling until the last second, the Mules were victorious by a score of 76-70. Bobby Sommers ’25 finished the game with a team-high 20 points, while Will Scherer ’25 registered the only double-double on either team.

The following day, Feb. 1, the men’s team regrouped for their next conference battle at Bowdoin. They wasted no time, scoring nine points off the jump with contributions from Chris Hammond ’26, Sommers, and Marc Garraud ’27. The Polar Bears responded, though, and a back-and-forth ensued. At the end of the first half, the Mammoths led 25-22. The second half was no different, with a constant battle between the two teams. Ultimately, the final two minutes proved to be the Mammoths’ time. Eight late free throws helped clinch the victory for the Mammoths, with a final score of 59-55. The team high in points and rebounds belonged to Scherer, while Sommers and C.J. Mitchell ’25 each registered a steal in the win. The Mammoths continue their conference road matches on Friday, Feb. 7, at Tufts.

Women’s Basketball

Similar to the men’s program, the women also faced off against NESCAC foes Colby and Bowdoin at home. On Jan. 31, Colby proved to be a tough opponent. Trading blows, the Mules got out to a fast start, but the Mammoths stayed in the game. Kori Barach ’25 registered a team-high 13 points and contributed four steals. Teammates Maya Cwalina ’25 and Annie McCarthy ’26 chipped in 10 and nine points, respectively. Entering the half only trailing by two, the Mammoths tied the score to start the half with a bucket from Elizabeth Cain ’28. However, the Mules maintained a slight lead for the rest of the game and would not relent. With final points from Colby in the last minutes, they edged the Mammoths 65-60. Barach and Cwalina both added seven rebounds in the loss.

Just one day later, on Feb. 1, the women refocused to take on Bowdoin, the current leader for women’s basketball in the NESCAC. Off to a hot start, the Mammoths jumped to a 13-10 lead after the first quarter, thanks to scores from Cwalina and Laura Mendell ’26. Bringing this intensity to quarter two, Macie Nugent ’27 and Sylvia Liddle ’26 added scores of their own to keep the streak going. However, the Polar Bears found their spark midway through the second quarter, putting together a run that resulted in a 34-26 Bowdoin lead at halftime. The lead would carry the Polar Bears to the end of regulation — despite the Mammoths cutting the deficit to six points with seven minutes remaining. In the loss, Mendell and Barach contributed 14 and 13 points, respectively. Next up, the Mammoths shift their focus to NESCAC rival Tufts. Come cheer them on this Friday, Feb. 7, at 7 p.m. in LeFrak!

Men’s Swim

On Feb. 1, the No. 17 men’s swim team traveled to Cambridge this past weekend to face No. 5 MIT. The first win of their meet came from the team of Andrew Yuen ’25, Fyn Nadel ’26, Jaden Olson ’25, and Ethan Van De Water ’26 in the 200-yard medley relay. Just one event later, first-year Charlie McMillan ’28 swam the 1000-yard freestyle in a time of 9:45.62 to register another first-place finish for the Mammoths. In the following event — the 200-yard freestyle — senior Gabriele Lunardi ’25 took home first place, too, increasing the score column for the mammoths. The men finished first and second in the 100-yard breaststroke, thanks to strong races from Tor Metelmann ’25 and Henry Liu ’27. After Olson’s strong relay leg in the opening event, he came back to win the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 49.33. First-year Tyler Palm ’28 was victorious in the men’s 3-meter dive, rounding out the first-place finishes on the men’s side. Despite these impressive performances, MIT prevailed with a final score of 164-121. The Engineers clinched important wins in events including the 100-yard backstroke, 200-yard butterfly, 50-yard freestyle, 100-yard freestyle, and 200-yard backstroke. The team refocuses and returns to training as they prepare for their postseason NESCAC championship meet on Feb. 20.

Women’s Swim

For their final dual meet of the season on Feb. 1, the No. 23 women also traveled to MIT. For the Mammoths, the performance of the meet belonged to sophomore Paige Arnold ’27, who registered two wins for the Mammoths in the 100-yard freestyle and the 200-yard individual medley. Additional point contributions came from Cora Spelke ’25, Emory Tudor ’26, Allison Lacroix ’25, Ariya Snelwar ’28, Megan Lee ’25, Sydney Thompson ’28, Kaya Tray ’28, Jennifer Adams ’25, as well as others. The combination of Spelke, Ava Liu ’28, Katherine Hoffman ’25, and Lucy Smith ’27 worked together to finish second in the 200-yard medley relay. Divers Sydney Bluestein ’25 and Donna Zhang ’26 also scored points for the Mammoths in the 1-meter and 3-meter diving competitions. Ultimately, the reigning NEWMAC champions and No. 3-ranked MIT women’s team overwhelmed the Mammoths by winning 14 events and scoring a final tally of 209.5-86.5. The women now prepare for their upcoming postseason, which kicks off in Waterville, ME, on Feb. 13 for NESCAC championships.