Courtesy of Babson Sports Information

BABSON PARK, MA – Nationally-ranked Amherst College scored three consecutive goals to start the game on its way to a 5-3 victory over host Babson College in a non-conference field hockey contest at Babson's MacDowell Field on Thursday night. With the win, the Lord Jeffs, ranked 20th in the country in the most recent NFHCA poll, improved to 6-3 overall, while the Beavers dropped to 7-4 on the season.

Babson had the better of play early on, recording two penalty corners and three shots in the first five minutes. However, Amherst gradually took control and eventually got on the board when senior Molly Malloy (Stamford, CT) knocked in a tip pass from sophomore Chrissy Cantore (Hershey, PA) during a scramble in front at 16:26. The Jeffs then tacked on two more scores over the next 10 minutes, as junior Liz Schink (Chicago, IL) put back a rebound of Malloy's shot at 21:23 and sophomore Carly Dudzik (Darien, CT) blasted a ball off a defender's stick and into the upper right corner at 26:14.

The Beavers got one goal back just before the half, as senior co-captain Jess Paladino tucked a rebound of sophomore Courtney Weaving's shot at 32:45. It was Paladino's 12th goal of the season and 44th of her career, moving her into sole possession of second place on Babson's all-time scoring list. 

Amherst would re-establish its three-goal cushion 10 minutes into the second half, as Schink took a pass from first-year Kaitlyn McInnis (Franklin, MA) at the top of the circle and ripped a shot into the lower right corner for her second goal of the game at 45:00. The Jeffs later added what would prove to be an important insurance goal, as first-year Katie McMahon (Denville, NJ) scored off a rebound of McInnis' bid at 59:18. 

Babson made one final push late in regulation, scoring twice in the final three minutes. Paladino tipped a long hit from junior co-captain Colleen Kelly inside the right post for her second of the game at 66:59, and junior Sarah Fredlund made it a two-goal affair when she tipped a pass from Paladino over the goalie and into the upper right corner at 68:02. However, that would be as close as the Beavers would get, as Amherst ran out the clock to secure the 5-3 victory.

Sophomore Jess Pashos finished with seven saves in net for Babson, while sophomore Emily Vitale (Cheshire, CT) turned away two shots in the cage for Amherst. The Lord Jeffs will return to action Saturday, Oct. 10 when they host nationally-ranked Middlebury College in a pivotal NESCAC matchup.