AMHERST, Mass. -- Amherst College junior setter Carly Cooper had 26 assists and 18 digs Saturday, but it wasn't enough as the Mammoths dropped a tightly-contested five-set thriller to conference rival Tufts University, 25-17, 15-25, 11-25, 25-11 and 13-15 at LeFrak Gymnasium. 

The Mammoths fall to 9-6 overall and 5-3 in the conference. Amherst will host UMass-Boston Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. back in LeFrak. Tufts improved to 13-4 overall and 7-1 in the NESCAC.

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS:

* Amherst opened the match by taking control of the first set early. The Mammoths built a 9-4 lead behind two kills from Charlotte Rasmussen and one each from Caroline Tilton and Sam Underwood. However, Tufts came firing back and was able to even the score at 12. Keeping their composure, the Mammoths reeled off seven consecutive points to take command, 19-12. Kinsey Cronin had a key kill and two block assists to set the tone for the Mammoths, who would go to the 27-17 win.

* The Jumbos took both set two, 25-15, and set three, 25-11. It was 16-15 Tufts after Anaya Thomas' kill got the Mammoths within one, but Tufts scored the next nine point to close out the victory. Back-to-back kills in the third set from Cronin and Thomas brought Amherst within six at 13-7, but a 12-4 Tufts' run ended the set.

* With their backs to the wall, the Mammoths came up strong in the fourth set. Up 10-8, the Mammoths put together an amazing 11-point run to take control at 21-8. Senior Lani Uyeno was on the serve for 10 of those points. Underwood and Tilton had two kills each in the run, and Chloe Chanren had a kill and teamed up with Underwood for a block. 

* In the winner-takes-the-match fifth set, Tufts got off to a 4-1 lead and Amherst coach Val Jones called a timeout. A service error and a Tilton kill made it 4-3. The Jumbos went up 11-5, but the Mammoths remained steadfast. Down 14-10, they reeled off three straight points in part thanks to a Cooper ace and a Tilton kill. But Tufts' ended the match with an undiggable attack that found the floor. 

BY THE NUMBERS:

* Amherst hit .132 for the entire match, Tufts .122, 

* Audette led all participants with 13 kills. Tilton had 10 for Amherst, Cronin nine and Underwood eight. Cronin was in on seven blocks and had five digs. Lizzie Papalia notched eight assists and 22 digs.