AMHERST, Mass. -- Amherst scored less than a minute into the match to take an early lead and they added two more goals after that to defeat the Bates women's soccer team 3-0 Sunday afternoon.
Emily Hester scored her first goal of the season for Amherst (6-2-1, 3-1-1 NESCAC) just 59 seconds in, on an assist from Delancey King to put the Bobcats (2-7-1, 0-6-1 NESCAC) in an early 1-0 hole.
In the 11th minute of action, Amherst added to their lead when Hannah Guzzi found the back of the net on an assist from Rubii Tamen.
Amherst out-shot Bates 15-1 in the first half and 25-7 overall in the match.
Junior goalkeeper Sarah McCarthy (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) made a season-high 11 saves in just over 71 minutes in goal for Bates.
Amherst nearly went up 3-0 in the 17th minute but first-year center back MacKenzie Kelly (Dallas, Texas) made a great defensive save to keep the Bobcats within two.
The Bobcats finally got a shot off in the 41st minute but first-year Sarah DiPillo's (Medway, Mass.) shot was stopped by Amherst keeper Chelsea Cutler.
In the second half, junior Julia Rosen (Springfield, Mass.) recorded a shot on goal in the 52nd minute that was stopped by Cutler for her second save of the day.
In the 53rd minute, Guzzi fired a shot on goal that McCarthy deflected away but it bounced right to Tamen who netted the third goal of the match for Amherst.
Sophomore Olivia Amdur (Chicago, Ill.) provided a spark for Bates in the second half, tallying two shots on goal and three shots overall. But none found the back of the net as Amherst recorded a shutout.
Bates looks to get back on track this Saturday when they host Connecticut College at 11:00 a.m.
