This past weekend, Amherst field hockey played two away games, facing off against fellow NESCAC schools Colby and Bates. Unfortunately, the Mammoths suffered two close losses. Both games ended with final scores of 1-0.

Amherst played the Colby Mules on Saturday, Oct. 14, and it was a closely matched affair, with both Amherst and Colby registering five shots on goal. Amherst had eight total shots, which bested Colby’s five. Amherst also had sixteen penalty corners, while Colby only had four.

Unfortunately, while the statistics favored Amherst, the final score did not. Colby took an early lead, scoring six minutes into the game off of its first shot. Amherst came close to scoring during an eight-minute span in the second half of the game, with the Mammoths earning four penalty corners. Elizabeth Turnbull ’18 nearly scored off a pass from Kendall Codey ’19, but the Mules’ goalie made a key save. Amherst goalie Emilie Flamme ’20 tallied four saves throughout the game, but it was not enough to earn the victory.

Amherst returned to the field the next day to compete against Bates. Once again, Amherst had the advantage in total shots, shots on goal and total penalty corners. Unfortunately, yet again, it was not enough to secure the win. The game remained tied at 0-0 for majority of the playing time. With eight minutes left, Turnbull again came close to getting the Mammoths onto the scoreboard, but Bates managed to stop it. Laura Schwartzman ’20 took another shot off the rebound of Turnbull’s original shot, but that was also blocked. Bates ended the stalemate soon thereafter, scoring with just four minutes left to play. The Mammoths stayed focused and continued to fight until they very end of the game, earning back-to-back penalty corners and taking three shots in the final ten seconds of the game. Unfortunately, they were unable to get onto the scoreboard, and Bates came away with the win.

With these two losses, Amherst now has an overall record of 8-4 and a conference record of 4-4. Amherst will return to action on Saturday, Oct. 21, traveling to face Little Three rival Wesleyan.