The Amherst women’s soccer team extended its winning streak to seven, as they took down Hamilton 3-0, Keene State 3-0, Colby 2-0 and Connecticut College 2-1 over the last two weeks.
Last week, the purple and white dominated Hamilton offensively for the majority of the match, significantly outshooting the Continentals 20-6.
As has become the standard, Amherst came out with a quick start. Putting the pressure on from the very beginning, Rubii Tamen ’19 tore down the field and knocked one past Hamilton’s goalkeeper just two minutes into the game.
“We know our team performs better when we score early, so we make it a mission to do so,” Emily Hester ’17 said.
Keeping with this mindset, not five minutes after Tamen scored, Megan Root ’19 took a free kick and perfectly arched the ball to teammate Ashlyn Heller ’17, who connected with the ball to put it into the net. In the remainder of the first half, Heller took two more shots on goal. Hamilton’s goalie was able to stop these, but the constant offensive pressure from Amherst was hard to fight.
The Continentals eventually managed three shots on target, but Amherst’s Chelsea Cutler ’19 saved each of them, earning her third career shutout.
“I have a lot of confidence in my teammates,” Cutler said. “It’s easier to shut the other team out when you have such good players on the field with you.”
Amherst solidified the score at 3-0 when Hester took control of a loose ball and took an impressive, successful shot on goal from a significant distance out.
“A couple of games ago we really found our confidence,” Sarah Frohman ’17 said. “We have been saying since day one that we need to believe in ourselves, and I think that against Tufts, we showed each other that belief is now more than a word: we have exemplified pride.”
Amherst continued its winning ways with a victory over Keene State last Tuesday. Yet again the purple and white took an early lead with a goal from Maeve McNamara ’19 at the 9:13 mark. Minutes later, Hannah Guzzi ’18, who leads Amherst in shots on goal, struck a beautiful ball that seemed to be heading just under the crossbar, but Keene State’s goalie was able to make the save.
Four minutes into the second half, Tamen made the score 2-0 off an assist from Guzzi. 20 minutes later, in the 68th minute, Askins looped a ball into the air that McNamara headed into the back of the net, solidifying the score at 3-0.
Against Colby, a game that doubled as the team’s senior day, the team rolled over their league opponent. Though the first goal wasn’t fired home until the 21:36 mark, Amherst was still the first to score. Off several rebounds from a shot by Tamen, Guzzi was finally able to find the back of the net to give the purple and white a 1-0 advantage. Then, in the second half, Guzzi scored again, her 10th goal of the season, off a cross from McNamara.
The following day, Amherst furthered their impressive winning streak with an important win over NESCAC opponent, Conn. College.
After a quick goal by the Camels, an intense back-and-forth first half ensued, Askins took a powerful shot from 30 yards out and tied the score. This restored Amherst’s confidence, and they ended up outshooting the Camels 7-3. However, the score remained tied throughout much of the second half, with the threat of a possible overtime looming. Nevertheless, in the 82nd minute, Askins scored off a beautiful cross from Tamen, and the purple and white took the victory.
Amherst returns to the field on Saturday, Oct. 22, when they travel to Little Three rival Wesleyan and hope to continue their impressive winning streak.
