Nico Pascual-Leone has become somewhat of a campus celebrity over the past few years. Most people know him as one of the captains of Amherst’s national champion soccer team. In addition to this, Pascual-Leone is an unflappably kind resident counselor and a chemistry major who has long had his heart set on medical school. He has pursued his twin passions for medicine and soccer with a remarkable degree of focus, never losing his warm smile along the way.
I had never met Amira Lundy-Harris before, but upon walking into our meeting at Frost Café I immediately recognized why they were selected for a profile. Their dominating air of confidence, paired with an effortless demeanor, brought my eyes to focus on Lundy-Harris, despite the buzzing afternoon noises of the cafe. Through their leadership in the Black Students Union and Pride Alliance and their commitment to queer and black studies, Lundy-Harris has dedicated a fruitful college career to a thorough understanding of intersectionality.
Women’s basketball continued to impress under the leadership of NESCAC coach of the year G.P. Gromacki, who improved his outstanding record to 262-24 over nine seasons at Amherst. The women finished 30-2 on the year, 9-1 in conference and made yet another NCAA postseason run, falling only in the Final Four round to a talented Thomas More squad. The women dominated in regular season play, winning by margins of up to 58 points — they won their first game of the season against Albert Magnus 97-39.
The men’s soccer team had a fairytale season, going 18-1-2 overall en route to the program’s first-ever national championship. After falling to Brandeis in the third round of the NCAA tournament in their 2014 season, the squad was back and hungry for more before graduating one of the most talented and decorated classes that the program has ever seen.
Under the leadership of Division III coach of the year Justin Serpone, the purple and white came back from a goal deficit, netting two unanswered to claim the national championship over Loras College.
