Around the Herd: Oct. 28 to Nov. 2 in Athletics

Cross Country

On Saturday, the men’s and women’s cross country teams traveled to Middlebury, VT, to compete in the NESCAC championship meet. The men won first overall while the women placed ninth out of 11 teams.

In the eight-kilometer men’s race, Harrison Dow ’27 finished first for the Mammoths, crossing the finish line in 24:50 to place fourth overall. Only a second later, Stan Craig ’27 finished at the 24:51 mark to place fifth overall. Finishing in eighth place, Carter Bengtson ’29 ran a time of 25:04. Following immediately behind, Parker Boyle ’27 took ninth place, finishing at the 25:04 mark as well. Ryan Monohan ’30 rounded out Amherst’s scoring five runners, finishing in 26:05 in 47th place. These strong finishes gave the Mammoths a total of 66 points, narrowly besting Williams’ 67 and Tufts’ 70 to win the Championship for the first time since 2018.

Sydney Remenar ’30 led the Mammoths in the women’s six-kilometer race, finishing in 22:09 and placing 25th overall. Taking 37th place, Nikki Chopra ’27 ran a time of 22:40. Not far behind, Nora Hart ’28 finished in 23:08 to claim 47th. Running a time of 23:26, Ava Thomas ’28 finished in 54th place.

Taylor Gudebski ’28 was the last scoring runner for Amherst, finishing at the 23:31 mark to take 57th. The Mammoths earned 220 points for these finishes, placing ninth. 

Next Saturday, the teams will compete in the D3 Challenge meet, hosted by Connecticut College.

Men’s Soccer

Last week, the men’s soccer team defeated Middlebury, 3-2, in the NESCAC Quarterfinals. 

On Saturday afternoon, the eighth-seeded Mammoths stunned Middlebury, the first seed and the No. 1-ranked team in the country. The game remained scoreless for the first 40 minutes, thanks in part to goaltenders Trey Sheppard ’28 and Spencer Kreitzer ’29, who combined to save seven early Panther attempts. In the 40th minute, Amherst broke the deadlock when Finn Hoefer ’29 found the back of the net off a corner taken by Mohammed Nuhu ’27. The Mammoths entered halftime with a 1-0 advantage. Shortly after the break, though, Middlebury tied the game, scoring in the 49th minute. Less than a minute later, Amherst almost regained the lead off a shot from Obed Opoku ’28, but Middlebury’s goalkeeper made a diving save to keep the score tied. Yet the Mammoths would not be denied and regained the lead shortly thereafter when, in the 54th minute, a feed from Nuhu connected with Jacob Dinzeo ’28, who put Amherst ahead 2-1. Less than four minutes later, Middlebury capitalized on an opportunity and tied the score 2-2 with a shot into the right panel of the goal. In the 68th minute, Hoefer gained possession of a loose ball and sent it toward the net. The forward’s shot bounced off the post, but Hoefer beat the goalie to the rebound and headed the ball into the center of the net.  The Panthers desperately tried to find an equalizer — including a chance off a free kick that Kreitzer knocked away — but nothing prevailed. Overall, the Panthers had a 30-11 advantage in total shots and an 11-5 advantage in shots on goal. Middlebury also earned 18 corner kicks compared to Amherst’s three. Yet, the Mammoths withstood the storm and emerged with a monumental playoff upset, winning 3-2.

The Mammoths advance to the NESCAC Semifinal on Saturday, in a matchup against rival Williams.

Volleyball

The volleyball team faced Williams on senior day, falling 3-2 in a hard-fought battle.

Despite the Ephs winning the opening three points, kills from Sofia Camilo ’28, Addison Lau ’29, and Tiana Richardson ’27, coupled with a stretch of error-free plays, brought the Mammoths to a commanding 17-9 lead in the first set. Amherst controlled the remainder of the stanza, and a kill from Lay and a service ace from Liliana Brandt ’30 clinched a 25-14 win. Williams rallied in the second set, taking a 15-9 lead despite four kills from Camilo. Richardson then produced consecutive kills, but the Mammoths struggled to slow down the Ephs’ offense and ultimately lost the set 25-16. Both teams traded points in the third set, finding themselves tied at 7-7. However, Williams eventually pulled ahead, going on an 11-4 run to lead 18-11. Camilo and Lau continued to produce kills, but Ephs won their second set 25-18. The fourth set was again evenly matched as both teams exchanged points till the score was tied at 17 apiece. A kill from Gabrielle Hines ’29 and a service ace from Judith Subirats-Bosch ’29 put Amherst ahead 20-17, but Williams responded with a 5-0 run. With the match on the line, the Mammoths forced four consecutive points to tie the score at 25 before winning the set 27-25 to force a fifth set. Despite a 4-0 Amherst run after kills from Camilo and Hines, the Ephs controlled the match set. The Mammoths struggled to find their rhythm after falling behind 6-4, and Williams claimed the final set 15-11 to win the game 3-2. 

This loss unfortunately eliminates the team from playoff contention. The Mammoths posted an 11-11 record this season, going 3-7 against NESCAC opponents. 

Field Hockey

This weekend, the field hockey team lost 1-0 to No. 3-ranked Middlebury in the NESCAC quarterfinals. 

The Panthers put the offensive pressure on early, firing five shots in the opening seven minutes of the game. Goaltender Grace Puchalski ’27 saved two of the attempts, while two were blocked, and one went wide. The Mammoths responded with offensive changes of their own when Cate LaFreniere ’30 launched a shot on net 10 minutes into the first quarter. Amherst generated another close chance in the second quarter when Ella Kang ’30 forced Middlebury’s goalkeeper to make a key save. The Panthers continued to pester the net, firing four shots in the next three minutes. Tight defense from the Mammoths kept the game scoreless at halftime. In the third quarter, both teams continued to trade possession; Genevieve Caruso ’27 launched a shot that went just over the goal post, and Middlebury fired two attempts of their own. This pattern continued into the final stanza, as both teams desperately tried to break through the stalemate. Unfortunately, the Panthers found the back of the net in the final forty seconds, besting Amherst 1-0 in a heartbreaker. 

With the regular season and NESCAC postseason behind them, the team now waits to see whether they will earn an NCAA Tournament berth. Selections for the postseason will be announced this Sunday. 

Football

The Mammoths did it again this week, staging yet another late comeback to beat Tufts on enemy turf.

The game began with a missed field goal in Medford, Mass. Amherst received the opening kick and drove deep into Jumbos territory, forging ahead with a healthy diet of runs and intermediate passes. Running back Demetrius Smith ’27 was active immediately, keeping Amherst ahead of the sticks with six-to-eight-yard runs — he would continue to do so for the rest of the game. A pair of chunk passes from quarterback Marek Hill ’28, first to Christian Moore ’27 and then to Matt Diaz ’27, moved the Mammoths further downfield. Yet, despite driving to Tufts’s 17-yard line, a missed field goal attempt left the Mammoths empty-handed on their first possession.

Their second attempt would fare better. After the Amherst defense forced a Jumbos punt, the offense took over backed up to their own 1-yard line. Two strong Smith runs gave Amherst some breathing room, and Hill capitalized on that space, finding Jadon Davis ’29 downfield for a 73-yard strike. Smith, deservedly, capped off the length-of-the-field drive with a one-yard touchdown plunge. However, Amherst held this 7-0 lead only briefly, as Tufts scored twice unanswered, taking a 14-7 lead with under three minutes to play before halftime. A Hill fumble had set up the second Jumbos score, but the junior captain was unfazed and responded by marching downfield for a touchdown before the break. After using his arm to pick apart the Jumbos defense during the drive, he finished it with his legs, scrambling for the score on a fourth-and-goal as the first-half clock expired. 

Amherst would fall behind in the third quarter, conceding a touchdown and only tacking on a field goal of their own before the fourth quarter arrived. Entering the final quarter trailing 21-17, the defense set the tone immediately. Tufts opted to go for a fourth-and-one at midfield two minutes into the frame, and the Mammoth defensive line engulfed the Jumbos’ running back at the line of scrimmage, turning Tufts over on downs. Then, three plays later, Hill connected with Davis for a 53-yard touchdown pass. Suddenly ahead 24-21, Amherst’s defense took the reins and secured the win. On the Jumbos’ first possession after the Amherst score, Izaiah Gallagher ’29 sacked the quarterback on third down and forced a punt. Then, with a little more than two minutes left in the contest, Carson Skotak ’27 intercepted a pass at midfield. The Amherst offense only had to convert two first downs to deplete the game clock and win the matchup. Fittingly, the game’s final play was a Hill completion to Davis, who finished with 141 yards and a touchdown. Hill ended with 270 passing yards, a passing touchdown, and a rushing touchdown. Smith added 71 yards and a touchdown of his own. 

The dramatic win is Amherst’s seventh straight, and the undefeated Mammoths will host undefeated Trinity next Saturday in a matchup that will likely determine the winner of the NESCAC Championship. 

Head of the Herd: Finn Hoefer ’29

This week, the men’s soccer team brought down the nation’s top-ranked team, Middlebury, to propel them to the NESCAC semifinals, with help from sophomore forward Finn Hoefer. Hoefer scored the opening and game-winning goal in the 3-2 victory. With six goals on the season, he now shares the team lead. Hoefer noted: “It was really great to get the win vs. #1 Middlebury last weekend. It was the perfect result to capitalize [on] an undefeated October. The team played great, and to be able to contribute two goals is something I am really proud of.” He added that he is “really looking forward to the game this weekend vs. Williams.” For his instrumental two goals in the team’s triumphant upset, Hoefer earns the title of this week’s Head of the Herd.