AMHERST, Mass. – First-year Ben Wick scored two goals and sophomore Brendan Reilly tallied three assists to lead the Amherst College men's lacrosse team to a 13-9 win over Connecticut College on Wednesday evening at Gooding Field. The Mammoths built an early lead and maintained momentum throughout all four quarters to secure the victory.

Amherst and Connecticut College traded early goals in the first quarter before the Mammoths pulled ahead, finishing the frame with a 5-2 advantage. The Camels attempted to rally in the second quarter, closing the gap to just one, but Amherst held strong and entered halftime leading 6-5. A high-powered third quarter saw the Mammoths outscore the Camels 5-2, widening their lead to four. Despite late pushes from Connecticut College in the final period, Amherst remained in control and finished with a four-goal win.

With this victory, Amherst improves to 8-2 on the season. The Mammoths will return to action on Saturday (April 12) when they travel to face Bates College at 1 pm.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:

* Amherst opened the scoring with Alex Vlacich netting a goal off an assist from Alex Giacobbe at 10:44 in the first quarter. The Camels responded four minutes later with a goal from Liam Horkan. Amherst quickly regained momentum with three consecutive goals—Wick from Reilly, Nico Berger also from Reilly, and an unassisted effort by Bennett Chow. Matthew Sheinberg capped the quarter with a solo goal, giving Amherst a 5-2 lead.

* The Camels opened the second quarter with an unassisted goal by Aidan McAvoy at 14:18. Amherst answered three minutes later as Devon Christian scored his first of the night. Two more unassisted goals from Connecticut College's J.J. Ford and McAvoy cut Amherst's lead to 6-5 going into the half.

* The Mammoths came out strong in the third, beginning with Wick's second goal of the game—again assisted by Reilly—at 11:27. Though the Camels briefly narrowed the gap, Amherst's offense kicked into high gear. Willie Doyle, Nicholas Kopp, Giacobbe and Doyle again all found the back of the net, pushing Amherst to an 11-7 advantage by the end of the third quarter.

* In the fourth, Christian added his second goal at 11:43. Though the Camels attempted to chip away at the lead with goals from Graydon Diamond and Ford, Chow's late unassisted strike between the Camels' two goals sealed the game for the Mammoths at 13-9.

BY THE NUMBERS:

* Amherst outshot Connecticut College, 49-43.

* The Mammoths won 20 of 26 faceoffs.

* Amherst collected 27 ground balls, while the Camels had 35.