This past Saturday, Nov. 4, Williams quashed any hopes the Amherst women’s soccer team had of returning to the NESCAC championship game this year. After a big upset over the second-ranked Conn. College Camels in the tournament quarterfinals, the Mammoths were looking to beat the odds once again and top perennial powerhouse Williams in the semifinals. Despite a valiant effort from Amherst in the first 45 minutes of the game, an offensively dominant second half by the Ephs propelled the favorites to a comfortable 4-2 victory.

During the first half of the contest, the action was in the Mammoths’ favor, and Amherst was first to get on the board thanks to sophomore midfielder Sasha Savitsky’s individual effort. On a savvy defensive play, Savitsky intercepted a Williams’ pass. Maintaining possession of the ball, Savitsky skillfully navigated her way past two defenders before blasting the ball into the back corner of the net. The Mammoths’ go-ahead goal came with a little less than 10 minutes to go in the first half. Amherst managed to keep the lead for the remainder of the half, and Savitsky’s tally stood as the lone goal in the first 45 minutes of play.

Following the halftime break, the Ephs came out strong, scoring just 1:52 into the second half. Less than five minutes later, Williams found the nylon again to earn its first lead of the match.

Savitsky, stepping up for the Mammoths once more, notched her second goal of the game exactly three minutes later to knot the game once again. For the next quarter hour, the Ephs and Mammoths remained deadlocked in a 2-2 tie, with both sides probing for the game-winner. However, in the 70th minute of play, Kristina Alvarado found the back of the net for Williams and put the Ephs in front, this time for good. Just under 10 minutes later, Sydney Jones tacked on an insurance goal for the Williams, and the Mammoths were unable to make up the two-goal deficit before the final buzzer sounded. With the loss to Williams, Amherst’s run in the NESCAC tournament came to a heartbreaking end, and with it went any hopes of making the NCAA tournament.

Ultimately, the loss to the Ephs sealed the Mammoths’ post-season fate, as Amherst failed to make the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2010.

“It is obviously not the outcome we were hoping for, but I’m certainly proud of how relentlessly our team fought,” captain Delancey King ’18 said. “I’m very thankful for the four years I got to be a part of this program.”
With the loss Amherst closed its season with a record of 9-7-1 overall and 4-5-1 in the conference.