SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. – Holding a one-goal lead with time winding down, Kendall Codey '19 came up big for the Mammoths, recording a defensive save to turn away the equalizer as the No. 13 Amherst College field hockey team battled to a 3-2 victory over Mounty Holyoke College Thursday evening at MHC Tuft Field.

With the victory, Amherst begins the 2017 season 1-0, while Mount Holyoke falls to 1-1 on the year. The Mammoths return to action on Saturday, Sept. 9 when they welcome No. 8 Bowdoin to Gooding Field for their first NESCAC contest of the season beginning at 11 a.m.

First on the scoreboard, the Lyons jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead as Kaitlin Braz redirected a low, hard shot from the top right of the circle past the Amherst keeper 13:39 into the matchup.

Amherst responded less than two minutes later, as Elizabeth Turnbull '18 evened the score at 1-1 following a penalty corner. Corralling the corner insertion pass from Laura Schwartzman '20, Turnbull rocketed a shot through the legs of Lyon Morgan Turner.

Maintaining offensive pressure, the Mammoths took their first lead of season at the 29:28 mark as Schwartzman once again connected with Turnbull after earning a corner opportunity. Gathering the dish from Schwartzman, Turnbull faked a shot and stepped to the side of a defender before driving the ball into the goal.

Extending the Amherst lead to 3-1 in the second half, Codey deflected a shot from the top right of the circle into the bottom left corner of the net to give the Mammoths a two-goal buffer with 20:30 left to play.  

Undeterred, Mount Holyoke made it a one-score game 2:41 later as Anna Ballou raced towards the left post before threading a pass to  Liz Delorme for a tip-in on the back corner.

Making a push to deadlock the contest before the final horn, the Lyons drew a penalty corner with two minutes remaining on the clock. Set up at the top left of the circle, Mirjam Keochakian nearly found nylon as she sent a high lofted shot over the head of the Amherst netminder, but Codey came through in the clutch as she demonstrated impressive hand-eye coordination and hit the ball out of midair and towards the sideline to direct Amherst to the 3-2 victory.

GAME NOTES

• Emilie Flamme '20 (1-0) earned the win for the Mammoths in goal, while Turner (1-1) made six stops for Mount Holyoke in the losing effort.
• Amherst owned a 14-5 edge in shots in the matchup, including a 7-1 advantage in the first half, and a 6-4 edge in penalty corner opportunities.
• Katie Bergamesca '18 had a game-high four shot attempts while a trio of Mammoths each put two attempts on target.
• Keochakian led the Lyon offense, taking two shots in the contest.

Contact: Melissa Martin '15