AMHERST, Mass. --  An incredible defensive effort coupled with a goal from co-captain Ben Clark-Eden in the 23rd minute Sunday allowed the 13th-ranked Amherst College men's soccer team to punch its ticket to the final four via a 1-0 victory over conference rival Middlebury on its own Hitchcock Field. 

This will be the Mammoths sixth visit to the national semifinals. Amherst (17-2-3) will face Washington & Lee (15-4-5) Friday, December 1st at 6:30 p.m. in a semifinal at Kerr Stadium in Salem, VA. 

"This has not been easy ... this has been hard and that's what makes it so special," Amherst head coach Justin Serpone said. "For the guys to have this experience, to fight through this, I'm just so proud of our guys and so happy for them."

Sunday was a rematch of the national quarterfinal in Amherst played in 2021, when the Mammoths defeated the Panthers 1-0. Amherst and Middlebury have met four times in the NCAA Tournament, with the Mammoths now 2-0-2 and advancing all four times. 

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:

* The Mammoths came out creating scoring chances early on. Only five minutes into the game, senior co-captain  Ada Okorogheye curled a low effort from 22 yards out that rolled just wide of the right post. With 27:54 to go, Okorogheye dribbled into the left side of the box and slotted a ball to Mohammed Nuhu, who was 1v.1 with Middlebury keeper Ryan Grady and tried to flick a quick ball into the short side, but Grady go his fingertips on the ball to slide it wide. 

* The Mammoths capitalized on a set piece in the 23rd minute. Nuhu booted a liner into the box from right to left. The ball was headed by Simon Kalinauskas off the far left post and rebounded riht back toward the Amherst senior. Grady, a Panther defender and Kalinauskas all went for the ball with the Kalinauskas winning the battle and attempting a second shot, which hit Grady and bounded to the left edge of the six-yard box where Clark-Eden rocketed a shot that hit off a Grady's hand and deflected up into the top left corner of the goal for a 1-0 Amherst lead. 

* With 7:41 to go in the half, Mammoth midfielder Ignacio Cubeddeu was tripped up in the box and Amherst awarded a penalty, but Grady dove to his left to make a nice save and keep it a one-goal game. 

* The Amherst midfielders and backs -- Jonny Novak, Niall Murphy, Wyatt McCarthy, Micah Valadez Bush, Clark-Eden and Kalinauskas in particular -- were outstanding in limiting Middlebury's space and place to create. The Panthers lone shot on frame came with one minute left in the half on a 40-yard boot by Eujin Chae that Amherst senior goalkeeper Max Landa came out on and made a leaping save of. 

* The Mammoths controlled the majority of play in the second half. Nuhu attempted to score a second marker in the 58th minute, but his shot from the right side struck the outside of the side netting.

* In the final two minutes Middlebury brought 10 up but could not get a shot on frame. Jordan St. Louis received a ball on the left edge near the six but was immediately stripped of possession by a sliding Clark-Eden. Jay Hoke crossed a ball into the box in the final minute which Shawn Rapal headed out of harms way. In the final seconds Grady rushed up to cross midfield and lofted a ball into the box that appeared to be bending wide, but Landa corralled it as the game concluded. 

"Our goal was to get back to Virginia," Clark-Eden said. "This (Final Four) was not the end goal. We're happy to be back but we have some unfinished business, This is where we want to be, this is where we think we should be. It means so much to every single person here, and to see it come to fruition here today is the stuff of dreams."

BY THE NUMBERS:

* Amherst finished with a 17-9 advantage in shots, 6-1 on frame. The Mammoths took 9 corner kicks to the Panthers' 4. 

* Landa made 1 save, while Grady stopped 5 shots in the game.