aWATERVILLE, Me. -- Amherst College junior Sophia Haynes celebrated her birthday in style Sunday, scoring one goal and setting up another as the 2nd-ranked Mammoths shutout Colby, 3-0, to sweep their Maine weekend trip. 

Amherst improved to 6-0-2 overall and 4-0-1 in the conference. Colby slipped to 5-3-0 overall, 2-3-0 in the NESCAC.

The Mammoths are back in action Saturday when they host Little 3 rival Wesleyan at 12 p.m. on Hitchcock Field. 

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:

* Amherst took the lead early in the sixth minute of the game. Patience Kum collected a ball at midfield near the right sideline and sent a short pass ahead to Abby Schwartz. Schwartz sent it back to Kum, who then threaded a longer pass into the to left corner of the box, where Haynes ran onto it, took a step to her right and fired a  shot into the top right corner of the net from 16 yards out. 

* The Mammoths were able to set the pace and control it throughout the first half. That resulted in a 10-2 advantage in shots over the first 45 minutes. The Mammoths backline was able to limit the Mules' scoring attempts to four shots that wer enot on fame, the closest call coming when Colby's Annie Liebich got her head on a corner kick but sent the ball wide left with about 25 minutes remaining in the half. 

* Three minutes later the Mammoths had a 2-on-1 that was initially thwarted by the Mules. The ball was sent back to the top of the box by Schwartz and Brooke Ingemi ran onto it, but her shot from 20 yards out went wide left. Minutes later first-year Abigail Danso fired off a shot from 30 yards out with her left foot that went just wide right. 

* With 10:27 remaining Katie Pederson ripped off a shot from just outside the right corner of the box that was tipped over the crossbar by the Colby keeper. 

* Amherst was able to take a 2-0 lead with 1:51 left in the half on a great effort from first-year Caroline Coletti. The play began on the left sideline as Ella Johnson threw the ball in to Halle Hanna. Hanna quickly chipped the ball to her left into the box as Coletti ran on to it, slipped past a defender on her right, cut left to avoid a second defender, then back right around a third defender to create a 1 v. 1 opportunity with the keeper, who she beat to the short side with a shot from the six. 

* Colby came out in the second half and was able to create more opportunities, although again many came from outside the box. The Mules actually out shot the Mammoths 9-3 over the final 45 minutes, but it was Amherst which would net the only score of the half. 

* That score came in the 59th minute, and was the product of some great hustle by Haynes. A Mule defender played the ball back to her goalie in the Colby end, but Haynes used her great speed to close on te keeper and block the clearing pass. The ball ricocheted to Kum at the left side of the box. Kum took a step to her right and calmly fired a beautiful shot along the grass and into the short-side left corner of the net for a 3-0 Amherst lead. 

BY THE NUMBERS:

* Amherst had the edge in shots (13-11), shots on goal (5-3) and corner kicks (8-2). 

* Mika Fisher (74) and Lulu Fickes (16) split the time in goal for the Mammoths. Fisher made two saves and Fickes one. 

* The shutout was the seventh in eight games this season for the Mammoths.