AMHERST — This weekend marks the start of the New England Small College Athletic Conference women’s soccer playoffs.
Competing in its 17th NESCAC Championship, second-seeded Amherst will host the No. 7 seed Connecticut College in a quarterfinal game Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
Amherst ended the 2016 regular season with its ninth straight win Tuesday in a 3-2 double-overtime thriller against Trinity, securing the No. 2 seed with an 8-1-1 conference record.
Amherst fell behind early twice in the second half but responded almost immediately with goals of its own. Junior Hannah Guzzi scored her conference leading 12th goal of the season and senior captain Emily Masten netted the overtime game winner.
Tuesday was the first time Amherst had allowed two goals in a game this season. Recognizing her team’s mistakes, coach Jen Hughes knew exactly what adjustments to work on ahead of Saturday’s game.
“We have to kind of bolster our defense a little bit,” Hughes said. “Hopefully we can iron out the kinks.”
In their last matchup Oct. 16, Amherst beat the Camels by a score of 2-1 after giving up an early goal just 16 seconds into the matchup. Amherst had to adjust its defense to adapt to Connecticut’s fast-paced offense and leading goal scorer, Ludlow’s Alex Baltazar (nine goals in 2016). Freshman striker Sloan Askins scored in the last ten minutes of each half leading Amherst to the victory.
Connecticut was ranked 18th prior to its regular season matchup with Amherst; however, a four-game losing streak saw them drop out of national rankings and finish with a conference record of 5-4-1.
Amherst has lost in the NESCAC quarterfinals the past two seasons in heartbreaking, one-goal defeats, both against Middlebury College. In 2015, the Camels finished the season as the 10th seed in the NESCAC, missing the playoffs just one year after winning the conference title in 2014.
The last time Hughes, who is in her 13th season as head coach, led Amherst to a NESCAC Championship title was in 2011, one year before the current seniors started their Amherst careers.
After Tuesday’s win, Hughes did not know who they would be playing in the quarterfinals but was confident her team would be well-prepared.
“We have to play as a team, and we are focused on the next opponent,” Hughes said.
“We are shooting for a NESCAC championship.”