The past week brought great success for the Amherst College field hockey team as it picked up two crucial wins. One came over non-conference foe Keene State on Wednesday, Sept. 17 while the second was a key NESCAC victory over Williams on Saturday, Sept. 20.
In the Jeffs’ defeat of the Owls, Ellie Anderson ’15 opened up the scoring just over nine minutes into the contest. Anderson received the pass from Madeline Tank ’15 and netted her first goal of the 2014 season. Anderson’s goal would proe to be the game-winner, but Caroline Fiore ’18 added insurance just over a minute later.
The Jeffs earned a penalty stroke, which the first-year converted for her second collegiate tally. That would end the scorign for the day as Amherst topped Keene State 2-0.
The 11th-ranked Jeffs held a decisive 15-7 advantage in shots and a slim 5-3 advantage in penalty shots. Emily Horwitz ’17 made five saves to earn the shutout.
Amherst took the momentum into a Little Three battle with Williams the following Saturday. They downed the 18th-ranked Ephs, 2-0.
The scoring again got started early, this time under three minutes into play. Madeline Tank ’15 tipped a hard shot by Annie Turnbull ’16 past the Williams keeper. The goal was good for Tank’s sixth on the season, the current team high.
Amherst dominated play throughout the remainder of the first half, controlling the ball in the neutral zone and mounting strong offensive attacks. They failed to convert on their remaining seven shots on goal in the half and carried the 1-0 lead into the break.
An insuarance tally finally came in the 56th minute. Annie Turnbull was again involved in the scoring, this time netting it herself, her first of the new season. Her sister, Elizabeth Turnbull ’18, assisted her.
Williams made the most of the final 10 minutes with a few offensive opportunities of their own, but the Amherst defense remained strong to keep the Ephs off the board. Borwitz made two saves, both at key moments, to earn her second shutout of the week.
The sophomore keeper remained humble when asked about her standout play. “The shutouts were great,” she said. “But they were really the result of a great team effort.”
With the win, Amherst improved to 4-2 on the year and 2-2 in conference play. The Jeffs have two important NESCAC contests this weekend. They will travel to face Tufts on Saturday, Sept. 27 at noon. Amherst downed the Jumbos by a score of 3-0 last season.
“This weekend should be pretty tough, since Tufts is undefeated this year,” Horwitz said.
To round out the week, Amherst will host Bates on Sunday, Sept. 28.
