Playing past Thanksgiving and into December for the first time since 2008, men’s soccer looks to make history this upcoming weekend in Kansas City, as the team has a chance to win its first-ever Division III national championship title.
Amherst advanced to its first Final Four since 2008 with a pair of shutout victories two weekends ago on Hitchcock Field, defeating Lycoming, 2-0, in the Sweet 16, and earning a thrilling 1-0 double-overtime victory against Trinity (Texas) in the Elite Eight. Heading into the Final Four, the purple and white stand at 17-1-1 on the season.
The Amherst College women’s basketball team started off its season strong, winning their first three consecutive games by significant margins.
In the seasonopener against Albertus Magnus, the purple and white took an early leap past their opponent, coming out of the first five minutes on an 11-0 run.
The Amherst men’s basketball team opened its season with decisive wins in its first three games of the year at home in LeFrak Gymnasium. The fifth-ranked squad came out on top after the annual Ken Wright ’52 Invitational Tournament. During the tournament, the purple and white faced Johnston State College and Worcester State University, outscoring their opponents 201-131 combined. The following Monday, Amherst faced Anna Maria College and won 84-64 to start their season 3-0.
Amherst women’s volleyball ended their season this week with a strong showing in their first NCAA tournament appearance since 2010. The Firedogs travelled to Boston to play Johnson & Wales University on Friday night and with that win advanced to face host MIT on Saturday evening.
The Amherst women’s soccer team captured a win in the first round of the NCAA tournament before suffering a season-ending loss to 11th-ranked Brandeis University (15-2-4) in a game that was decided in penalty kicks. The purple and white conclude the 2015 season ranked 16th in the nation and with an overall record of 11-3-3.
“I feel extremely fortunate to have played with this team,” captain Jessy Hale ’16 said. “Every player brought something different on the field, but more importantly for our team chemistry. This truly is a special group that was a privilege to be a part of.”
With a win over Morrisville State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, Nov. 15 on Hitchcock Field, the sixth-ranked men’s soccer team advances to the Sweet 16 for the sixth consecutive season and the eighth time in the past nine years. After the victory against Morrisville State, Amherst stands at 15-1-1 with a maximum of four games remaining in the season.
Mohamed Hussein ’18 took first place overall for the fifth time this season, remaining unbeaten against Div. III competition this season. His performance, along with the other competing Amherst runners, helped the purple and white take second place in a field of 55 teams at the NCAA Northeast Regional meet this past Saturday. Amherst narrowly missed nabbing the first-place title, falling by just one point to their rival.
Hussein took the first-place title by finishing the race in 24:39, an improvement upon his fifth place finish at the meet last year and time of 25:30.
