MEDFORD, Mass. – Senior Sara Culhane logged her second three-goal game in the Purple & White's past three contests, including the game-winner in the 90th minute, to help lift the No. 13 Amherst College field hockey team past No. 6 Tufts University, 3-2 in a double overtime thriller at Ounjian Field.

With the win Amherst improves to 6-2 on the season and 2-2 in league play, while Tufts suffers its first loss of the year and falls to 7-1 overall (3-1 NESCAC). Amherst returns to action tomorrow, Sunday, Oct. 2 when they welcome NESCAC foe Bates College to Gooding Field for a 12 p.m. matchup, while the Jumbos take on Hamilton on Oct. 2 at 12 p.m.

Tufts took a 1-0 lead just 5:23 into the outing, as Gigi Tutoni notched her team-leading seventh goal of the season on an unassisted tally.

Amherst evened the score after 45 minutes of scoreless back-and-forth play. Collecting a pass just outside the top right of the circle and beating a defender, Elizabeth Turnbull '18 ripped a shot towards net. Positioned directly in front of the Jumbo netminder, Culhane redirected the ball off her stick and into the lower left hand corner of the goal at the 50:22 mark.

Rachel Hamilton regained the lead for Tufts nine minutes later as she collected a pinpoint pass through the circle from Mary Kate Patton in front of the goal and quickly put a shot past the pad of Emily Horwitz '17.

Culhane evened the contest at 2-2 with her second goal of the game with 5:47 remaining in regulation. Racing towards goal, Culhane corralled a pass from Mary Grace Cronin '18 and powered a shot on target. Jumbo goalie Emily Polinski made the initial save, but the determined Culhane found her own rebound and buried a second shot into the netting.

After a goal-less first overtime that saw both sides register quality scoring opportunities, it was Cuhane who was able to break through in the 90th minute to secure the conference victory for the Purple & White. Drawing a Jumbo foul 40 yards out, Turnbull drove a ball towards Culhane who had snuck behind the Tufts defense on the restart. Gathering the pass at the penalty stroke mark, Culhane blasted a shot past the diving Polinski and into the bottom left corner of the goal while falling to the turf.

GAME NOTES

• First-year Emilie Flamme (1-0) earned her first collegiate win, making two saves in 68:35 in between the pipes for Amherst, while Emily Polinski (7-1) registered three saves in the losing effort.
• Tufts held a slight edge in both shots and penalty corners, 17-12 and 8-6, respectively.
• Culhane led all players in shots with seven in the matchup while five other Purple & White players each took one shot apiece.
• Tutoni led Tufts in shots with six, while Annie Artz and Celia Lewis each took three shots each for the Jumbos.