Around the Herd: Sept. 17 to Sept. 23 in Athletics

Football

The football team registered a huge win this Saturday, beating Hamilton 23-13 at home. 

On Amherst’s first possession of the game, quarterback Marek Hill ’28 decided to do it himself, rushing for 14 yards to move the chains and then running 57 yards right into the endzone. The Mammoths jumped to a quick 7-0 lead with a made extra point. 

From then on, the two teams traded possessions but ended scoreless until the 11-minute mark in the second quarter. Good field possession helped Hill send a pass downfield to Carter Jung ’26, which put the Mammoths in the red zone. While the team ultimately couldn’t find the endzone for the touchdown, Hudson Fulcher-Melendy ’28 kicked a successful field goal from the 2-yard line for the 10-0 score. In the following drive, Jackson Duncan ’27 sacked the Hamilton quarterback Luke Kurzum on fourth down, forcing a critical turnover. On the next offensive possession, Hill showcased his versatility in the air and on the ground, rushing it himself while also finding Sam Gerber ’26 twice in a row for vital yardage. A completed pass to Jung landed him in the endzone, adding six more points for the Mammoths. While Hamilton blocked the extra point, the Mammoths retained a 16-0 lead heading into halftime. 

In the second half, little changed. Hamilton missed a field goal out of the gate, before a string of strong Amherst offensive plays again resulted in a Hill to Jung connection in the endzone, giving the Mammoths their largest lead of the game: 23-0. 

In the fourth quarter, Hamilton made a few plays that put them on the scoreboard, including a touchdown at the three-minute mark. However, the damage had already been done, and they could not come close to erasing the deficit. The Mammoths claimed their first win of the season, 23-13.

Hill recorded two touchdowns in the win and led the team with 109 rushing yards, and was named NESCAC Co-Offensive Player of the Week. Gerber led the way for the receivers with 80 yards, while Jung had two touchdowns to match Hill’s. Carson Skotak ’27 added six tackles, while Duncan and Kemit Fisher ’26 each sacked Kurzum. The team prepares for another home game on Saturday, hosting Tufts.

Field Hockey

This week, the women’s field hockey team faced NESCAC rival Middlebury on Saturday, falling 3-2 in a heartbreaking overtime loss.

The Mammoths traveled to Vermont to face the No. 1-ranked Panthers. In the first quarter, Amherst was the first to score when Maya Harrington ’27 launched a pass to Chloe Agopian ’27, who was open in Middlebury’s circle. The forward — met one-on-one with the goalkeeper — then fired the ball into the net. In the second quarter, a key block from Katie Savino ’28 and a sliding save from netminder Kate Grady ’28 prevented the Panthers from getting on the board. A minute into the third stanza, Middlebury found an equalizer after capitalizing on a penalty corner. The Mammoths had their own penalty corner opportunity in the last quarter; with an assist from Justine Liguori ’26, Emily Huehn ’28 tapped the ball into the right corner of the goal, giving the Mammoths a 2-1 lead. In the last two seconds of the game, Middlebury tied the game again, sending the match into overtime. Despite saves from both Grady and Anna Aiello ’26, the Panthers scored the game-winning goal eight minutes into extra time. Grady made nine crucial saves in the 3-2 defeat. 

The team will return home to face MIT on Wednesday, Sept. 24, on Hill Field. 

Men’s Soccer

Men’s soccer kicked off its week on Wednesday with a game against Anna Maria College, winning decisively with an impressive 5-0 score. They then faced Middlebury on Saturday and tied 0-0, moving their overall record to 3-0-3. 

Starting strong with quick touches and sharp passes, Mohammed Nuhu ’27 opened the scoring for Amherst against Anna Maria off an assist from Kavi Krishnan ’28. Nuhu continued his goal streak less than 20 minutes later with an outstanding shot into the top left corner of the goal from 35 yards away. Bringing the score up to 3-0, Ioannis Hadjiyiannis ’26 fired a shot off a pass from Obed Opoku ’28, landing another goal into the net for Amherst. To close out an already eventful first half, Jacob Lahlou ’28 took a free kick from 25 yards out, which sailed past the opposing defensive line, bringing in an imposing fourth goal for the Mammoths. In the second half of the game, Enoch Duodu ’28 gained possession and drove the ball up the right side of the field towards the goal. Hadjiyiannis put away his second shot after finding Duodu’s assist, sending the ball flying into the back of the net and bringing the score to a decisive 5-0. Outshooting their opponent 17-5, Amherst played an absolutely dominant game, giving them their third win of the season. 

Three days later, Amherst’s match against Middlebury started in complete gridlock; neither side had impressive opportunities on goal. The Mammoths racked up two shots on goal in the first 22 minutes of play, and four shots total in the first half. The Panthers responded with three shots of their own, resulting in no goals, however. The back-and-forth play remained until the second half, when Middlebury took the offensive, outshooting Amherst with eight shots to none. Despite the offensive pressure, the Mammoths’ defense remained steady and prevented the Panthers from scoring. With his clean sheet against Middlebury, Trey Sheppard ’28 marked his fourth shutout this year. Amherst finished the match against Middlebury 0-0.

The team will face Bates at home on Saturday, Sept. 27, for its next game. 

Women’s Soccer

The women’s soccer team began its week at Emerson College on Wednesday, winning with an impressive score of 2-0. They continued their week with another away game at Middlebury on Saturday, drawing 0-0. 

Starting the game on defense against Emerson, the Mammoths quickly protected their goal from two corner kicks, keeping the score at 0-0 thanks to goalie Lulu Fickes ’27 and the tough defensive line. Later,  after Emerson's goalie, Hailey Forman, received a yellow card, Katie Pendersen ’28 banged a free kick in from nearly 30 yards out, giving the Mammoths a 1-0 lead. Riding the momentum from this goal, the Mammoths continued to pressure the Lions’ defense, with underclassmen Kate Donlan ’29, Millie McLeod ’28, and Emma Darling ’29 leading Amherst’s offensive line. Soon, Donlan made a clever pass to Becca Button ’28, who beat the opposing defenders to secure another Amherst goal, upping the score to 2-0. In the end, the Lions couldn’t respond, and Amherst cruised to victory, winning 2-0 and outshooting the Lions 22-5. 

On Saturday, against the Panthers, the team got off to a strong start despite a long travel day. The Mammoths controlled possession for most of the first period, creating multiple offensive opportunities. Among them, Brooke Ingemi ’25, Sophia Haynes ’25, and Pedersen all recorded shots, forcing Middlebury’s goalkeeper into the game. The closest opportunity came from Jessica Lomo ’27: the forward made a great defensive play to gain a free run towards the net. Unfortunately, the shot went just wide. The pressure from Amherst continued in the second. Mekhala Costello ’28’s shot attempt was smothered by Middlebury’s keeper after a corner kick taken by Ella Johnson ’26. Minutes later — on another corner kick — a ball from Caroline Coletti ’28 found Kate Quigley ’26, whose header went inches wide. Despite these efforts, the game ended 0-0, bringing their record to 4-1-1. 

The Mammoths will face their next opponents on Saturday, Sept. 27, for a home game against Bates. 

Volleyball

After a week off due to canceled games, the women’s volleyball team hosted back-to-back NESCAC games this weekend. The team won their first conference game, beating Bates 3-1 on Friday, before falling to Tufts in four sets the following day.  

The Mammoths got off to a hot start against Bates, trading points back and forth with the Bobcats in the first set. At the nine-point mark, the teams were in a stalemate until a Charlotte Rasmussen ’26 kill and Judith Subirats-Bosch ’29 ace gave the Mammoths unrelenting momentum. Addison Lau ’29 kept the spark going, registering three more kills and two aces to help the Mammoths claim the first set by their largest margin all match, 25-16. In the second set, the usual suspects helped the Mammoths to a victory. Rasmussen and Lau registered kills, while defensively, Sofia Camilo ’28 and Tiana Richardson ’27 racked up crucial blocks. A service ace by Stella Jacey ’29 secured the 25-20 victory for the Mammoths, who carried the 2-0 lead into the third set, which they narrowly lost. The fourth set proved to be the Mammoths’ time, though. While the teams traded points in the beginning, a run where the Mammoths earned six of seven straight points gave them the 13-10 lead that they needed. Subirats-Bosch notched a critical ace and Camilo slammed the final kill home, helping the Mammoths claim the fourth set 25-20 and beat Bates 3-1. Rasmussen led the offense with 14 kills, while Camilo held down the defense with five blocks. Subirats-Bosch and Lau contributed three service aces each at the line, and the team had 43 total kills. 

The following day, the team fell to the Tufts Jumbos. Tufts jumped to an early four-point lead and largely never looked back. After Amherst briefly regained the lead at 18-17, the Jumbos capitalized on seven of the next nine points to take the first set 25-20. Determined to put up a fight, the Mammoths continued to battle in the second set. Rasmussen, Chideraa Ngwadom ’27, Lau, Abby Nichols ’28, Allie McLaughlin ’27, and Ellie Meyers ’28 all recorded key blocks. It seemed like for every Amherst block, though, Tufts responded, and the teams found themselves tied at the 22-point mark. For a moment, it looked like Tufts would pull away, but Amherst continued to hold them off, increasing the match point to 30. Eventually, Rasmussen delivered a kill to give Amherst a 31-30 lead, and then McLaughlin and Nichols combined for their biggest block of the game, claiming the set at 32-30. With the match tied 1-1, Amherst finally relented, and the Jumbos took an early lead that Amherst never recovered from. Finally, in the fourth and final set, Tufts again overpowered a strong Amherst defense and finally toppled the mighty Mammoths. In the loss, Nichols led the team with 10 kills and four blocks.

Despite the team’s loss to Tufts on Saturday, both games provide them with invaluable conference experience, as they look ahead to an away match on Friday, Sept. 26, against Hamilton.

Women’s Cross Country

This week, the women’s cross country teams competed at the Cardinal Invitational hosted by Wesleyan on Saturday, placing fourth. 

After a two-week break between meets, the Mammoths competed again on Saturday in a 6k race. Crossing the line first overall was Hannah Stephenson ’28, who earned her second consecutive first-place finish with a time of 20:45 (a 5:33 mile average). The next finisher for Amherst was Daniella Perez-Cartaya ’28, whose time of 22:30 earned 18th overall. A minute later, Audrey Seeger ’28 crossed the finish line, placing 21st in 22:40. Finishing out the Mammoth’s scoring five, Zoë Marcus ’27 and Daphne Theiler ’26 ran times of 23:06 and 23:34 to take 30th and 38th, respectively. These finishes earned the Mammoths 108 points and fourth overall behind MIT, Coast Guard, and Wesleyan. 

The team will run again in the Paul Short Run at Lehigh University on Friday, Oct. 3.

Men’s Cross Country

On Saturday, the men’s cross country team placed third in the Cardinal Invitational meet.

In Middletown, Connecticut, the Mammoths competed in an 8k race on Saturday. Parker Boyle ’27 crossed the finish line first for Amherst, seventh overall, finishing in 24:52. Following closely behind, Carter Bengtson ’29 earned eighth place with a time of 24:53 in his collegiate invitational debut. And then, captain Henry Dennen ’26 finished seconds later in 25:09, taking 14th place. The Mammoths’ last two scoring runners were Caleb Barnes ’29 and Thomas Stephens ’26, who claimed 17th and 20th with finishing times of 25:15 and 25:26, respectively. Earning 66 points, the team finished third behind Wesleyan and MIT.

On Oct. 3, the team will compete next in the Paul Short Run.

Head of the Herd: Marek Hill ’28

The football team’s dominant win over Hamilton would not have been possible without a strong performance by sophomore quarterback Marek Hill ’28. Hill not only found Jung twice for key touchdown receptions, but he also took the ball himself for massive yardage and two individual touchdowns. His 109 rushing yards were a team high, and his 25 completions with no interceptions helped the team to victory. Hill credited his team and coaching staff: “My performance was the result of a great scheme by my coaches, and an outstanding game by my O-Line, where I [was never] sacked.” And, it is clear that the quarterback and the rest of the team are carrying this mentality with them moving forward. “I’m looking forward to getting back out and getting better with this team again, enjoying every day possible, and doing everything I can to be in the victory formation next Saturday.” For his phenomenal play both on the ground and putting the ball in the air, Hill is not only the NESCAC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, but this week’s Head of the Herd.