Around the Herd: April 26 to May 2 in Athletics

Baseball

The baseball team went 3-2 in the last full week of the regular season. The week began with a 9-6 win over Elms College at home on Memorial Field on Tuesday, May 26. It was the team’s pride game, so the Mammoths sported rainbow-colored hats. A five-run fifth inning proved the key to the Amherst win. The team headed to Cambridge the next day for a matchup with MIT. Following a high-scoring first inning in which both teams batted in four runs, the Mammoths seized control, ultimately grabbing a 18-10 win.

The team returned to Amherst for a three-game series with Middlebury, the final NESCAC action of the semester. Following a pair of losses — 6-7 loss on Friday, April 28, and 3-5 on Saturday — the Mammoth overpowered the Panthers in the second half of the Saturday double-header. The Mammoths cruised to a 13-2 victory behind a dominant nine-inning performance from pitcher Jacob Ribitzki ’24 and three RBIs from shortstop Jack McDermott ’25.

The Mammoths have one regular season game remaining, a meeting with UMass Boston on Memorial Field on Wednesday, May 3. First pitch will be at 3:30 p.m. Amherst’s 19-12-1 record has earned them a place in the NESCAC tournament, which will begin with a best-of-three series against Tufts on May 6.

Softball

The softball team won both halves of a double-header with Wesleyan in Middletown, Connecticut on Wednesday, April 26 to capture the Little Three Championship. The two wins extended the squads’ win streak to six, with all six wins coming against NESCAC opponents. The first win was a routine: Abby Moravek ’26 pitched five strong innings, conceding just one run on one hit. She was relieved by Dylan Briggs ’26, who conceded two runs on three hits in two innings. In front of the plate, the Mammoths brought in two base runners in the second inning to establish a 2-0 lead that they would not relinquish, ultimately winning 5-2.

In the second half of the double-header, the Mammoths found themselves down 5-0 after just four innings. The team responded quickly, though, bringing in two runs in the fifth, three in the sixth, and one in the seventh to capture a miraculous 6-5 victory. The Mammoths improved to 23-11 overall. They will close out the season with a double header against Colby in Waterville, Maine on Saturday, May 6. Their NESCAC championship is set to kick off on May 12.

Men’s Track and Field

Jordan Harrison ’26 is the fastest man in the NESCAC. He won the 100-meter dash in 10.82 seconds at the conference championships, which were held on Saturday, April 29 in New London, Connecticut. Harrison also came third in the 200-meter relay and contributed to a school-record time in the 100 relay. The men’s track and field team captured a second NESCAC title in the 800 relay. Lev Robertson ’24, Braedon Fiume ’24, Ben Davis ’26, and Will Nagy ’26 combined for a time of 7:48.09. On top of these wins, the team earned 13 All-NESCAC finishes, awarded for finishing in the top three in an event, en route to a third-overall finish. The team will send athletes to the New England Division III Championships this coming weekend.

Women’s Track and Field

The women’s track and field team captured two NESCAC titles and put up seven All-NESCAC finishes, securing fourth place overall at the conference championships, which were held on Saturday, April 29 in New London, Connecticut. Carolina Andrade ’24 broke her own school record in the javelin throw, launching it 40.52 meters to best the field — her previous record was 38.42 meters. The other title went to hurdler Arissa Grace McGowan ’26 , who won the 100-meter hurdles in 15.14 seconds. Her teammate Eliza Cardwell ’25 posted the top time in the preliminaries of 14.49 seconds, but she false-started in the final and was disqualified. The Mammoths will send athletes to New Englands this weekend.

Women’s Tennis

The No. 8 women’s tennis team competed in the NESCAC Tournament over the weekend. First up was a quarterfinal matchup with the No. 24 Bowdoin Polar Bears on Friday, April 28. The Mammoth doubles pairing of Katja Jules Viberg ’26 and ​​Karolina Dobiecka ’26; Amy Cui ’25 and Katie Hart ’25; and Sophie Diop ’26 and Mia Kintiroglou ’25 swept the polar bears. Singles wins from Diop and Dobiecka were enough to claim a 5-1 overall win.

The Mammoths moved on to a semifinal tilt with the No. 4 Wesleyan Cardinals on Apr. 29. In a reversal of the previous day's results, the Cardinals won two of three doubles matches, so they entered singles play needing just three wins from six matches. Though Calista Sha ’24 and Diop battled to single wins, it was not enough to prevent a 6-3 Wesleyan victory. The Cardinals, who have lost just once all season, went on to claim their fourth-straight NESCAC Championship on Sunday.

Despite the loss, the Mammoths’ season is not over. They have earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III tournament and will host the first three rounds on home turf. The Mammoths, who received a bye, will play in the round of 32 on Saturday, May 6.

Men’s Tennis

The No. 22 men’s tennis team lost in the first round of the NESCAC championships on Friday, April 28. The Mammoths faced the Williams Ephs, who they had lost 1-8 to just five days earlier. The Ephs came out strong, winning all three doubles matches. Wins at the number-two and number-three singles positions were enough to hand Williams the 5-0 victory and end the Mammoths' season.

Women’s Lacrosse

Over the past week, the No. 14 women’s lacrosse team closed out the regular season before falling in the first round of the NESCAC Tournament. The Mammoths hosted Trinity on Wednesday, April 28 for the final action of the regular season. The Bantams scored the first five goals of the game, and though the Mammoths closed the gap, the lead was never relinquished. Trinity captured a 13-10 win. The Mammoths finished the regular season at 9-5.

The team then traveled to Medford for a NESCAC-quarterfinal matchup with the No. 7 Tufts Jumbos. Again, the Mammoths fell behind early, finding themselves trailing 0-3 after the first quarter and 2-7 at halftime. During a five minute stretch near the end of the third quarter, the Mammoths roared back to life, scoring four goals back-to-back to cut the lead to just one at 7-8. The Jumbos responded, though, extending the lead back out to 7-10 and ultimately capturing a 11-9 victory to send the Mammoths packing.

Men’s Lacrosse

Following a win to end the regular season, the No. 10 men’s lacrosse team dispatched the No. 9 Bowdoin Polar Bears in the NESCAC quarterfinals. They will play in the semifinals next weekend. The final game of the regular season came on Wednesday, April 26 against Trinity in Hartford, Connecticut. Though the score was even at 5-5 at the half, the Mammoths dominated the second half to claim a 16-10 win behind four goals apiece for Bob Gross ’26 and Bayard DeMallie ’23. Amherst finished the regular season with a 10-4 record.

The Mammoths then moved on to the postseason, hosting the Polar Bears for a thrilling quarterfinal matchup on Saturday, April 29. The Mammoths scored the first, but Bowdoin responded with three straight to take an early 3-1 lead. Amherst recovered, though, entering the half with a 9-7 lead. The Polar Bears responded with a strong second half, and the game was tied at 16 with just 1:35 to play. At that point, Gross, who had already scored five goals, picked up a loose ball in front of the Bowdoin net and fired in a behind-the-back shot that proved the game winner. Another goal in the final minute secured the Mammoths a 18-16 victory. Gross’ six goals were a career high and earned him NESCAC Player of the Week honors. The Mammoths advanced to the semifinals; they are set to face the Tufts Jumbos on the road on Saturday, May 6.