AMHERST, Mass. – A goal from Kathryn Nathan '13 (Pembroke, Mass.) in the 39th minute is all the Amherst College women's soccer team needed to earn a 1-0 win over 15th-ranked Springfield College Thursday evening at Gooding Field. 

Sarah Duffy '14 (Fairfield, Conn.) picked up the assist on Nathan's goal and Allie Horwitz '12 (Woodbridge, Conn.) bumped her scoreless minute streak to 356:21, as the Lord Jeffs improved to 4-0-0 on the season. 

The Pride carried a three-game win streak into Amherst but dropped to 4-2-0 with the result, marking the first loss of the season for goalkeeper Erin Greenstein '13. 

Horwitz stopped four shots in the win, while Greenstein made a pair of saves for the Pride. The Lord Jeffs put three of their 16 shots on goal and attempted 12 corner kicks in the game, while their defense surrendered nine shots and held Springfield to only two corners.  

Amherst started to take control of the game in the ninth minute when Jill Kochanek '12 (Pittsburgh, Pa.) sent a header to Duffy on the far post, but the Lord Jeff sophomore would push her shot wide. Moments later Mel Stier '15 (Deerfield, Mass.) nearly gave the hosts a lead, but her shot drilled the left post. 

Springfield's first scoring chance began to take form when Ashley Carresi '14 intercepted an Amherst pass and sent the ball down the left sideline. The Pride wound up attempting a corner kick but were unable to put a shot on net. 

With 9:30 remaining in the first half, Amherst's defense played the ball ahead to Stier, who dribbled toward the goal. She attempted to get a shot by Greenstein on the near post, but the Springfield goalie came up with the stop. Soon after, an Amherst free kick resulted in an Ellen Ingebritsen '14 (Portola Valley, Calif.) header that went wide. 

Amherst's persistence finally paid off when Duffy found Nathan at the top of the box. Nathan turned and ripped a hard shot that snuck underneath the crossbar, as Greenstein made a diving effort but could not come up with the save. Nathan's first goal of the season gave Amherst a 1-0 lead at 38:06 and marked the fourth consecutive game in which she and Duffy have each recorded at least one point. 

The second half did not feature nearly as many scoring chances as the first. Amherst's best opportunity came nine minutes into the frame on a corner kick that made its way to Ariana Twomey '15 (Boxford, Mass.) on the far post, but the Amherst first-year was denied by Greenstein.  

Springfield nearly tied things up with 17 minutes to play when a ball was played from the back line ahead to Katie Mantie '12. The senior co-captain beat the Amherst defense to the ball at the top of the box, but Horwitz got there just in time to clear it out of harm's way.  

Amherst is off to a 4-0-0 start for the first time since the 2006 squad won its first five games. This is the first Amherst team in at least 12 years to begin a season with four consecutive shutouts, as the Jeffs are out-scoring their opposition by a 12-0 margin. 

Both teams will return to action Saturday, Sept. 24, when Springfield hosts MIT and Amherst travels to take on Hamilton.