Heading into their final stretch of regular season games, the No. 11-ranked Jeffs looked to keep their winning streak alive. They did just that, defeating both Keene State and Hamilton this past week.

The first win, over the Owls (9-2), came on Thursday, Oct. 3. The Jeffs played host in the match and dealt the Keene State squad just their second loss of the year.

Annika Nygren ’16 got the scoring started for Amherst. After a pair of shots by midfielder Alex Phillie ’14 and forward Krista Zsitvay, ’14 Nygren was able to gain control of the rebound and find the back of the net just over three and a half minutes into play.

Keene State answered ten minutes later as Sami Smith found Haylie Dolan in front of the net to knot things at one.
Just as the first half was ending, the Jeffs put together a strong offensive drive to take the lead heading into the half.

The opportunity came off a corner, one of four won by Amherst in the half. Nygren had her second of the day as she tucked a rebound off of a Madeline Tank ’15 shot into the right corner.

The Jeffs took their goal lead into the intermission and came out of the break strong, looking to supplement their one goal cushion.

Tank and Phillie both put on good efforts, having consecutive shots on goal, but the attempts were turned away by Keene State goalie Chloe Audesse.

Amherst keeper Rachel Tannenbaum ’15 responded to her counterparts saves and made a diving stop to shut down the attack of Keene’s Leddy Gallagher.

Katie Paolano ’16 added an insurance goal for Amherst in the 53rd minute. She took the assist from Tank and pocketed it to the left side of the cage.

Keene State did not go quietly as they cut the deficit in half with just under five minutes remaining in the game. Marisa Lemoine gathered the assist from Smith and beat Tannenbaum to her left to make the score 3-2.

The Jeffs would ensure that the decision fell their way however, as Tank gained control of the ball and cleared it out of Amherst’s defense half during the Owls’ final offensive push.

Paolano acknowledged the back and forth nature of the game.

“Both teams were fast and athletic,” Paolano said. “But we took care of the ball while maintaining our composure throughout the game.”

This composure reflected in the numbers as the Jeffs had a total of 12 corners on the day, a 12-2 advantage over Keene and also held the advantage in shots, 23-4.

They carried this high offensive power with them as they travelled to Hamilton for a NESCAC contest on Saturday, Oct. 5.
Six different Jeffs scored in their 8-0 rout of the Continentals.

Tank began the scoring frenzy for the Jeffs, scoring her eighth goal on the year off an assist from Zsitvay.
Nygren found the back of the net fifteen minutes later as she finished Paolano’s first assist on the day.

Paolano’s second assist came as she fed Kerry Fusco ’15 with just over eleven minutes remaining in the first half.
The Jeffs had offensive control for the majority of the first half and went into the break with a 3-0 lead.

Sara Culhane ’17 was the story of the second half. She earned a hat trick over just a twenty minute span scoring off two assists from fellow forward Zsitvay and a third from Nygren.

Paolano got involved in the scoring action with nine minutes remaining in the game as she netted a rebound that bounced off the pads of Hamilton keeper Hannah Keohane.

Zsitvay would provide the final blow as she blasted a shot from just inside the shooting arc, an opportunity that stemmed from an Amherst penalty corner.

Tannenbaum made six saves and split the shut out with Emily Horwitz ’17, the Jeffs fourth shutout on the year.

The win allowed Amherst to maintain their spot atop the NESCAC standings, a spot they now share with Tufts, the defending national champions.

With only four NESCAC contests remaining in the regular season, the Jeffs will travel to Colby (5-2-1) on Saturday, Oct. 12 for a crucial conference battle.