AMHERST, MA – The Amherst College men's soccer team battled NESCAC rival Tufts University at a frigid Hitchcock Field on Sunday to come away with a hard-fought win and a slot in the semifinal round of the conference tournament. The teams came up knotted at three goals apiece after 90 minutes of regulation and two ten-minute sudden death periods, forcing a session of penalty kicks. Each team made its first two attempts, but only the Lord Jeffs would convert on a third, finishing with a 3-2 victory.
After Tufts controlled the opening five minutes of the game, Amherst responded with two great chances to score early, when junior Ryan O'Donnell (Belchertown, MA) received the ball off a corner kick and ripped a pair of shots from close range, only to be turned away by Tufts goalkeeper Pat Tonelli. Amherst pressured again just five minutes later, when, ten minutes into the half, the Jeffs took two more shots in front of the net; Tonelli, though, denied both.
At 33:00, senior co-captain midfielder Rob Madden (Woodbridge, CT) sent a long ball to the corner, setting up a long cross to the middle that Tonelli knocked out of play. On the ensuing corner kick, Amherst sophomore forward Jake Duker (Newton, MA) placed the ball right to the head of first-year midfielder Matt Lewis (Wayland, MA), who converted for the first goal of the game.
Tufts saw its first great opportunity at 20:00, when Alex Bedig booted a shot just wide from 20 yards out. The Jumbos would storm back five minutes later, when Joey Stampone's free kick found Dan Jozwiak, who threaded the ball over the reach of Amherst senior goalkeeper Moe Zeidan (Eden Prarie, MN) to tie the game, 1-1.
Amherst responded quickly, when, less than one minute later, senior co-captain forward Mike Wohl (Northampton, MA) rebounded a ball that Tonelli saved after sophomore Nick Lynch (Kingston, Jamaica) ripped a shot from 20 yards out. With Wohl's goal, Amherst took a 2-1 lead with 13:46 remaining in the half.
Tufts would not go into halftime trailing: Bedig flipped the ball over Zeidan and hit the crossbar with five minutes left in the half. After a short discussion, the referees ruled that the ball crossed the goal line before Zeidan grabbed it, tying the game at 2-2. Amherst sophomore goalkeeper Jeff Grover (Framingham, MA) entered the game for Amherst due to a Zeidan injury as the half closed out.
Tufts wasted no time in the second half, taking advantage of some sloppy Amherst play. Less than two minutes into the half, Stampone sent a long ball into Amherst territory. In an attempt to clear the ball, the Jeffs knocked the ball right to Jumbo Bob Kastoff, who placed a perfect ball low and to the corner to put Tufts ahead, 3-2.
The Jeffs looked as though they would tie the game less than two minutes later: a Madden shot got past Tonelli, but Tufts defender Andrew Drucker came up big to save and clear the ball. Amherst kept constant pressure in the second half, but failed to convert several times, largely due to Tonelli's efforts.
With nine minutes remaining in regulation and the Amherst season at risk, Lynch set up for a crucial corner kick. After struggling with corner kicks all day, Lynch finally placed a perfect ball to Madden, who headed the ball to the back of the net, tying the game at 3-3. Amherst would threaten once more in regulation when Wohl played a through ball to Duker, who chucked a shot just wide of the goal.
The temperature dropped and the wind picked up speed at the start of the first sudden death period. Amherst had the best opportunity of the frame when it got a free kick just outside of the penalty area, but the Tufts defense denied every Jeff shot. The Jumbos threatened with a close-range shot with just ten seconds remaining in the period, but Amherst deflected it and Grover smothered it.
Amherst got a golden opportunity just 40 seconds into the second sudden death period: O'Donnell dribbled along the end line, drawing Tonelli away from the net. Duker found the ball, shot at the open net from ten yards out, but missed high and wide. Amherst had chances to capitalize on a pair of corner kicks - including one with just two minutes remaining in the period - but failed to convert, forcing the game into penalty kicks.
Amherst and Tufts each converted on their first penalty kick attempts, and Tufts also converted on its second. On Amherst's second attempt, Tonelli came off his line too early on Duker's shot. Tonelli saved the shot, but because of the goalie violation Duker got to shoot again. He converted on his second attempt to match Tufts. Senior midfielder Ian Lovett (Newton, MA) converted in the fourth round of kicks to put Amherst ahead, 3-2, leaving Grover to make a crucial save on the fifth Jumbo attempt, preserving the Jeff victory.
Tonelli finished the day with eight saves for the Jumbos, who end their season with a 7-7-1 record. For Amherst, Grover recorded four saves and Zeidan recorded two.
Amherst returns to action Saturday at Williams College, to face a NESCAC opponent to be determined later today.
PENALTY KICKS (AMHERST: 3, TUFTS: 2)
Round One
Tufts – Alex Botwinick (MADE)
Amherst – Joe Addison (MADE)
Round Two
Tufts – Mattia Chason (MADE)
Amherst – Jake Duker (MADE)
Round Three
Tufts – Bear Duker (SAVED by Grover)
Amherst – Grayson Holland (MISSED wide)
Round Four
Tufts – Aaron Nass (SAVED by Grover)
Amherst – Ian Lovett (MADE)
Round Five
Tufts – Ben Castellot (SAVED by Grover)
