The Mammoths began their spring break campaign in a NESCAC matchup with Bowdoin. The Mammoths were ranked just ahead of the Polar Bears, who sat at No. 21 in national polls.
Just three minutes into the start of the game, star attacker Julia Crerend ’18 handled a pass from linemate Claire Dunbar ’21, ducked her shoulder past a charging defender and buried a shot past the Bowdoin netminder. The Polar Bears responded quickly, winning and converting a free position shot to tie the score just moments later.
The Mammoths then proceeded to go on an offensive rampage, scoring eight unanswered goals. Dunbar was a creative force for Amherst’s offense, providing the final pass on three Amherst goals. The Mammoths continued to hinder Bowdoin’s offense throughout the half, as Bowdoin took low-percentage shots, committed offensive fouls and was stymied by the prowess of goalie Talia Land ’20, who recorded six saves.
As the dust settled on the first half, Amherst was ahead by ten goals, 12-2.
In the second half, however, the Mammoths offensive machine sputtered, putting only four more goals past the Bowdoin keeper.
Meanwhile, the Polar Bears edged closer and closer, narrowing the gap to just six goals by the end. With a final score of 16-10, though, Amherst emerged victorious and with a better understanding of the team’s remarkable depth. Along with Dunbar’s five assists and Crerend’s five goals, midfielder Rebecca Wistreich ’21 recorded a goal and an assist in her first game action for the Mammoths.
To escape the winter weather, Amherst proceeded to migrate south to Discover Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex to face Farleigh Dickinson University Florham Campus. The Devils did not provide strong competition, as the Mammoths dominated the matchup. Amherst cleared the ball with a 70 percent success rate, quite impressive for the beginning of the season, controlled two-thirds of the draws, reduced their turnovers from the previous game by eight and dominated the Devils in the ground ball matchup, winning 21 to FDU-Florham’s 16. The statistics reflected in the final score, as Amherst won handily, 16-5.
The Mammoths’ next matchup, against Stevens Institute of Technology, proved to be a more difficult contest. Although the scoring began, as usual, with goals from Crerend, Dunbar and midfielder Isabelle Sennett ’21, the Ducks struck back, evening the score with six minutes to go in the first half.
As the final seconds ticked away, Cami Santor buried a shot past Land, pulling Stevens ahead going into the break.
The Ducks proceeded to pepper the Mammoths’ net in the opening moments of the second stanza. Finding themselves three goals behind, an unassisted Dunbar tally began another seven goal run for the Mammoths. Having turned the the tide against Stevens, which could only get another goal in edgewise, the Mammoths continued their unbeaten streak with a 13-9 win.
Returning to the Pioneer Valley, Amherst squared off against Springfield College in a chilly Tuesday evening away matchup.
In a dominant preformance, the Mammoths triumphed 14-2.
Dunbar, Crerend and Kathrine Malone ’20 each earned hat tricks, while Maia Noyes ’21 contibuted two goals and two assists.
The Mammoths return to action at noon on Saturday March 25, traveling to Clinton, New York to face Hamilton.
