Amherst baseball improved their season record this week to 13-11 overall and 6-3 in NESCAC play. The Mammoths took their Hamilton series 2-1 over the Continentals after suffering a tough loss on Friday. The two conference wins on Saturday keep Amherst in the running for postseason play.

On the road all weekend, Amherst suffered a tight 5-4 loss to Hamilton on Friday, April 21, as the Continentals notched two runs in the bottom of the ninth to walk off with the win. Junior Sam Schneider took the loss on the mound for the Mammoths, while Anthony Spina ’17 and Ariel Kenney ’18 both notched extra base hits.

The next day Amherst broke the game open with four runs in the top of the second inning to take a 4-0 lead over Hamilton. Spina started the scoring, blasting a solo homer over the left field wall, before Max Steinhorn ’18 forced a throwing error with two outs to score Kenney and Nick Nardone ’19. To cap the early scoring, Harry Roberson ’18 singled to plate classmate Ryan Hardin.

In the sixth inning, the Mammoths extended their lead to 7-1. Sophomore Chase Henley doubled to score Nardone for the second time that game. In the next at-bat, Hardin came up clutch with a triple to the right field wall to plate Henley and Severino Tocci ’20.

Senior Jackson Volle remains undefeated on the mound for the Mammoths with the win. Volle notched a full seven innings for a complete game allowing only four hits and one earned run.

The Continentals jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first to start the final game of the series before the Mammoths knotted the score in the next frame. After a slow start, Amherst exploded for seven runs in the sixth inning, five runs in the seventh and a run each in the eighth and ninth to run the score up to 16-3.

George Long ’17 started for the Mammoths, tossing 3.2 innings before sophomore Wilson Taylor entered in relief. Long allowed four hits and one earned run. Taylor impressed for 5.1 innings of relief, giving up only four hits and shutting out the Continentals for the remainder of the game.

The Mammoths finished the week of play with a win over Elms College in a six-inning matchup shortened by rain. Amherst rallied for an early 1-0 lead when Roberson ripped a single up the middle before moving himself to second on a throwing error by the Elms catcher. Roberson crossed the plate during the next at-bat on a single to center from Thanopoulos.

Elms got on the board in the top of the fifth before Thanopolous scored Hardin for his second RBI of the day to seal the victory for the Mammoths. First-year Zach Horowitz tossed four full innings for Amherst, shutting out Elms to earn the win.
The Mammoths take the field again when they collide with Wesleyan on the road Friday, April 28. Amherst returns home the next day for a double header against the Cardinals on their senior day.