After receiving an unexpected birth into the NCAA tournament early last week, Amherst women’s soccer focused on sharpening their attack in preparation for first round opponent, NYU. In Saturday’s game, the Jeffs found the back of the net in each half, advancing with a 2-0 win over NYU.

In the first half alone, Amherst posted a 5-3 shot advantage. Sophomore Quinn Phillips, first-year Meredith Manley and junior Jessy Hale combined to deliver four of the five shots on goal, but NYU’s keeper Cassie Steinberg denied their efforts.
At the 30-minute marker, Rachael Abernethy ’16 scored the first goal after connecting with Megan Kim ’16, tallying her seventh goal on the year and putting the Jeffs ahead 1-0.

Amherst continued to attack, countering NYU’s increased offensive pressure. Amherst junior goalkeeper, Holly Burwick amassed five of her six saves in the second half en route to her ninth shutout of the season.

Kim tallied her second assist of the game when she found sophomore Alex Sotak, who was able to slot the ball into the left side to push the Jeffs ahead by two.

Though Amherst posted a slim 8-7 shot advantage in the second half, the Jeffs remained poised to capture the 2-0 victory. With the win, Amherst advanced to the second round of the tournament, where they faced Nazareth in a nail-biter. Though the Jeffs would be unable to secure the win, the Purple and White showcased a heroic second half performance, forcing the game into two overtimes and penalty kicks.

Amherst struggled to find their rhythm in the first half as Nazareth dominated play. Nazareth jumped out to an early lead when Courtney Malia netted a goal 1:22 into action. Nazareth continued applying dominant pressure, finding the back of the net for the second time in the 20th minute of play.

Down 2-0 at the half and being outshot by Nazareth, Amherst’s chances did not look promising.

“We definitely didn’t play that well first half, but we really stepped it up in the second and came back and scored two goals,” said Emily Masten ’17.

With a second half momentum shift, the resilient Amherst squad refused to go down easily. In the 64th minute, senior Ariana Twomey assisted Hannah Guzzi ’18, who found the back of the net to slice the deficit in half and record her 10th goal on the year.

With two minutes remaining in regulation, the Jeffs fought to remain alive. Sophomore Emily Hester beat the Nazareth goalkeeper to tie the game at 2-2 on an assist from Twomey.

After two scoreless overtimes that saw the Jeffs post a 4-0 shot advantage in the first and Nazareth record a 2-0 shot advantage in the second, the game moved into penalty kicks.

Amherst nailed the first two attempts, while Nazareth missed their second. With a 2-1 advantage, Amherst failed to capitalize on the opportunity, missing the third take. Tied at 2-2, both teams punched the next attempt into the back of the net for a 3-3 tie. The game would be left up to the fifth and final penalty kick. The Jeffs missed the kick, and Nazareth drilled theirs into the back of the net to defeat Amherst, 4-3, and advance to the Sweet sixteen.

Nazareth held a 16-15 shot advantage. Amherst goalkeeper Holly Burwick ’16 recorded an impressive performance, tallying 10 saves.

Finishing the year with a 12-5-1 record, the Jeffs appeared in the NCAA tournament for the 14th time and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row. Though the Nazareth game didn’t turn out in the Jeffs’ favor, the players delivered a terrific effort in the hard-fought loss.

“Despite the loss, I am still very proud of how we played that second half. We definitely weren’t going to give up without a fight,” Masten added.