If you play or have played football at any level, chances are you at least know of someone who has experienced severe and/or long-lasting sequelae from a head injury. Followers of this year’s Amherst football team know the story of Ryan Silva ’14, and, unfortunately, his saga is not unique. A few years ago, this issue hit close to home when a now-19-year-old man, previously a middle school football teammate of mine, was involved in a head-injury horror story.
The Firedogs saw their season come to an abrupt end after suffering a sweep at the hands of their archrivals in the first round of the NESCAC Playoffs.
The Ephs took the match in convincing fashion, winning the first two sets by scores of 25-19 and 25-15. The Jeffs would battle back and make the third set close, but the Ephs took that one, too, 25-22.
With all their starpower, the Tigers sure put up a sad showing in a World Series in which they were — rightfully — the favorites.
Facing two critical NESCAC road tests — and needing to win them both to earn the number four seed in the NESCAC playoffs — the Firedogs responded, topping both Colby and Bates to move to 7-3 in league play.
As a reward for its efforts, the squad is now set to meet fifth-seeded archrival Williams on Friday, Nov. 2, in a NESCAC Quarterfinal matchup.
Just when it seemed that the Firedogs were gathering some valuable momentum, the squad lost three straight contests, dropping to 11-8 on the season.
On their second-to-last weekend of regular season play, the Lady Jeffs dropped each non-conference game at the Hall of Fame Classic by a 3-1 score. The matches were held at the homes of local rivals Smith and Mount Holyoke.
I’m not the first Red Sox fan who has all positive things to say about Derek Jeter, nor (I hope) will I be the last. This week, I’m taking the ubiquitous respect for the Yankee captain a step further. Baseball fans will already know why I’m taking up this subject now: The Bronx Bombers lost their shortstop for the remainder of the playoffs with a fractured ankle and now find themselves trailing the Tigers 3-0, a deficit from which only one team in history (that's right!) has come back.
The Firedogs have resurrected their season by winning five out of their last six games, including three NESCAC matchup, to move to 11-5 overall.
