AMHERST, MA. – Two goals from junior Zachary Murray gave the Amherst College men's ice hockey team a crucial victory in their final home game of the 2024-25 regular season at Orr Rink on Saturday, Feb. 15. Taking on a Tufts team who beat them 5-2 just under a month ago in an all-important NESCAC matchup, the Mammoths celebrated senior day in style, routing the Jumbos 5-1.
 
Before the game, the team honored the incredible careers of their five seniors, Bobby Luca, Ben Kuzma, Connor Leslie, Max Thiessen, and Matt Toporowski. Over their four years the class of 2025 has amassed an overall record of 48-40-9, for a winning percentage of .541.

With the win, Amherst moves to 9-11-2, while Tufts drops to 9-11-1overall. The Mammoths close their season looking to move into a spot in the NESCAC playoffs with two rivalry games against Middlebury and Williams next weekend. The first will come against the Panthers on Friday, Feb. 21, with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m. in Vermont.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
 
* The Mammoths got the day going with a goal just 3:33 into the game. A bouncing puck behind the Amherst net was corralled by Ryan Corcoran near the left corner. The junior floated a pass that trickled by two Tufts defenders and was picked up by classmate Josh Burke. Burke had no problem putting the puck past the Jumbos goalie for the 1-0 lead.
 
* However, that lead was short-lived, as Tufts fired back with a goal of their own on the odd man rush just two minutes later. The puck was dropped back to a trailing Jumbo, who put it on net. The resulting rebound was netted at the doorstep to tie the game at 1-1.
 
* That score held until the 4:25 mark in the second period, when Amherst took the lead once again. This time, the Mammoths executed perfectly on the breakout, with the puck laid back to Cristobal Tola deep in his own zone. The first-year fired a cross-ice pass to Kuzma on the right; he skated into the offensive zone and ripped a shot on net. The rebound fell right into the path of an onrushing Matt Vander Vort, who easily tapped the puck home to make it 2-1.
 
*  Amherst made it two unanswered with a tally just 37 seconds into the final frame. The Mammoth forecheck did its job, keeping the puck in the zone --- the puck was pin-balled back and forth behind the net until Luca was able to face up directly behind the cage. His wrap-around effort looked to be saved by the Jumbos netminder but eventually slid into the back of the net to give the home squad a 3-1 advantage.
 
* Murray made it 4-1 four minutes later. He dumped the puck into the offensive zone, where it was chased down by Kuzma. The Mammoth captain worked the puck over to Zach Jesse, and the sophomore roped a perfect pass across the face of goal to Murray. The junior was alone in front of the net and tipped the puck in for the Mammoths' fourth of the day.
 
* Murray netted his second of the game at 8:14 in the period. A quick break up the ice got Jacob Pohl the puck in the left corner of the o-zone. Murray slipped into a gap in the high slot, received the pass from Pohl, and lasered an almost unsavable one-timer to the far side top corner to make it 5-1.
 
BY THE NUMBERS:
 
* The team's _ goals on the day was their highest offensive output since Feb. 1, when they put five past Wesleyan. It was their fifth game with five or more goals this season.
 
* With two goals on the day, Murray notched his first multi-goal game of the season and his first since a two-goal, one assist outing against Connecticut College on Jan. 13, 2024.
 
* Palena made 34 saves in the win.