The Amherst women’s soccer team suffered two in-conference loses over the past weekend in tightly contested matches against Williams on Sept. 23 and against Conn. College on Sept. 24.

In unseasonably warm temperatures for the first days of fall, the Mammoths battled through back-to-back matches on Saturday and Sunday after a week of rest from games.

First, Amherst traveled to Williamstown to take on the Ephs. Currently ranked fourth in the nation by the NCAA, Williams was a formidable foe for the Mammoths, and Amherst ultimately lost the match 3-2.

Williams took an early lead in the first half, scoring within the five minute mark. On an assist from Hayley Roy ’20, Rubii Tamen ’19 answered back for the Mammoths roughly 10 minutes later to bring the score to 1-1.

Feeling the pressure, Williams ramped up the intensity and found the nylon two more times before halftime, entering the break leading 3-1.

The second half of the contest did not see any change to the scoreline until Hannah Guzzi ’18 found the back of the net with less than ten minutes to go in the game. Unfortunately for the Mammoths, the final minutes ticked off the clock, and Amherst was unable to notch an equalizing goal.

The Mammoths gave a valiant offensive effort, outshooting the Ephs 16-11 and maintaining a 6-3 advantage in corner kicks. Despite this attack, the Williams defense held fast, and the purple and white fell 3-2.

The following day, Amherst returned to Hitchcock Field to host Conn. College on a sweltering late September day. Amherst was first to get on the board, thanks to an early goal from Guzzi.

Less than a minute later, the Camels tallied a goal of their own to even the score. At around the 15-minute mark, Guzzi found the nylon once again, her seventh goal of the season, to help the Mammoths regain the lead. The score remained 2-1 as the match headed into halftime.

Most of the second half was uneventful, and it seemed as though Amherst would be able to come away with a victory after the preceding day’s loss.

However, the Camels had a different idea. In the 78th minute of the game, a Conn. College player launched a ball from 35 yards out that managed to get past Amherst goalkeeper Chelsea Cutler ’19.

As the clock wound down, it appeared that the match was headed towards overtime. However, with less than two minutes to go in the match, the Camels notched the game winner with a scrappy goal. After a save by Amherst goalkeeper Chelsea Cutler ’19, a Conn. College attacker jumped on the rebound to grab the lead.

As the Mammoths desperately searched for a third goal to send the game into overtime, Guzzi sent a shot towards the Camels’ goal that went in the net, but it was ruled that the ball crossed the goal line after the final whistle had sounded.

Heartbreakingly, the goal was taken off the board, and the Mammoths fell to the Camels 3-2.

After going 0-2 this past weekend, Amherst moves to 3-4 overall on the season and 1-3 within the NESCAC. The Amherst women will look to snap their losing streak with a home game against Tufts on Saturday, Sept. 30 at noon.

Then, they place an away match against New England College the following day at 2 p.m.