Men

Over spring break, the men’s lacrosse team racked up three consecutive wins, including an important NESCAC victory over Hamilton.

Before leaving for Fla., the Jeffs traveled to Beverly, Mass. on March 14 to face undefeated Endicott. The Gulls scored the first two goals before Devin Acton ’14 notched two in a row to tie it up. Endicott struck back with three straight goals, but Acton scored his third goal of the game to disrupt the Gulls’ momentum. Quinn Moroney ’16 was next to find the twine with Amherst’s fourth goal of the contest. He also had five assists on the day.

Down 7-4 at the half, the Jeffs went on a seven-goal run in the the second with Aaron Mathias ’14 scoring twice and the other five goals coming from Chris Albanese ’17, Matt Killian ’17, Kane Haffey ’16, Q. Moroney and Acton yet again. The Gulls threatened Amherst’s lead at the end of the game, scoring three goals in the fourth quarter, but the Amherst defense held strong for the 11-10 victory.

The following Tuesday the Jeffs faced Western New England College in Fla. After giving up an early goal, the Jeffs rattled off four in a row to end the first quarter, with two goals from Acton and one each from Patrick Moroney ’14 and Mathias. WNEC tied it up in the second, but Amherst continued their strong offensive showing by pouring in four more goals to give the Jeffs an 8-5 lead at halftime. Sophomores Dylan Park, Saw Lawlor and Charlie Gill all found the back of the net, and P. Moroney added one more of his own.

The second half was close until the end, but the Jeffs managed to pull out the 16-15 win thanks to three more goals from Park, two from both Acton and Mathias and one more from Gill. Q. Moroney continued his passing spree, finishing with a game-high four assists.

The following Friday the Jeffs defeated Hamilton College in an important NESCAC matchup. Winning 9-8, Jeffs’ had their third one-goal win in as many games. Q. Moroney finished with four goals. Haffey added two more, and Acton, Mathias and Park accounted for the other three.

The next day the Jeffs continued their success by beating MIT. The Jeffs were up 11-2 by halftime, and they continued to roll in the second. The MIT defense couldn’t contain the Jeffs high-octane offense, allowing 21 goals. Seven Jeffs scored their first collegiate goals in the contest.

“Our spring break trip was great for the team both on and off the field. We ended up with some big wins, and I feel like we grew closer as teammates being on the road together,” Haffey said. “We’re definitely beginning to click as an offense, and it seems like in any given game it could be a number of guys have a big day. We have strong depth and trust each other, which is going to be huge in the back half of our season. The rest of the season is loaded with some of the top NESCAC teams, and I’m excited to see how we stack up.”

The Jeffs hope to continue their strong play at Wesleyan on Saturday, March 29.

Women

The Amherst women’s lacrosse team spent their spring break at the National Training Center in Clermont, Fla., where the team was relieved of the cold New England weather. The Jeffs picked up two wins to add to their undefeated record. They are now 5-0 overall and 3-0 in the NESCAC.

“Our success in Florida was largely dependent on our versatility as a team,” Goaltender Christy Forrest ’16 said. “We were not used to playing in that kind of heat or playing on grass fields, but we came together in such a way that when we were presented with these challenges, we adapted as a unit. I don’t think that anyone on the team is feeling complacent with what we have accomplished thus far. The feeling is more so an eagerness to grow as a team and to keep collecting hard earned wins.”

The Jeffs beat William Smith in their first game by a decisive 9-2 margin. Although the Jeffs were up 3-2 going into halftime, they took control of the game in the second half by scoring six unanswered.

Rachel Passarelli ’16 had back-to-back goals that opened up the scoring for Amherst. Alex Philie ’14 extended the Jeffs’ lead to 3-0 with 12:45 remaining in the half. However, William Smith was able to break through twice before the intermission.

After the break, Philie and Passarelli tacked on two more goals apiece, while Mia Haughton ’16 and Krista Zsitvay ’14 each added tallies. Meghan Mills ’15 had three ground balls and Priscilla Tyler ’15 had five draw control wins to contribute to the Jeffs’ offense.

“It was really exciting to play a NESCAC opponent in Florida, though it definitely was a challenge to find the same intensity that comes naturally when we play in the Northeast on the fields that we are familiar with. But, I think that throughout the week we were able to cultivate the intensity and translate that into focus and hustle on the field, which is what ultimately lead us to the success that we saw,” Forrest said in regards to the team’s second match-up, where they faced Hamilton.

This game began with two goals by Passarelli again. Haughton and Mills extended the lead to 4-0, but the Continentals retaliated with three goals. Thanks to two more tallies from Mills and Zsitvay, the Jeffs cushioned their lead to 6-3.

Midway through the second half, Zsitvay added another goal for the Jeffs. The Continentals followed with two goals, but it was not enough to get them back in the game. Mills and Elizabeth Ludlow ’14 added a goal apiece to bring the Jeffs’ total to nine. Hamilton managed to score one more goal, but they were largely denied thanks to Forrest’s fourteen saves.

Coach Chris Paradis commented that she is happy with her team’s success, especially because the Jeffs are winning decisively, but they still have room for improvement. The NESCAC is very competitive as always, and Paradis and the team are looking forward to the challenging games that lie ahead.

Amherst will travel to Wheaton for an out-of-conference game Wednesday but will return to the home turf to host Midd. on Saturday at noon.