AMHERST, MA. – With 10 minutes remaining in regulation it looked like the No. 4 Wesleyan women's soccer team was headed to postseason overtime soccer as the scoreboard still clocked a 0-0 tally, but two minutes later No. 1 Amherst College scored what would be the game deciding goal, felling Wesleyan 1-0 in the NESCAC semifinal match on Saturday afternoon from Hitchcock Field.

The Cardinals end their season 7-4-6 overall and 3-2-5 in the NESCAC. Amherst improves to 15-1-1 and 8-1-1 in the NESCAC, and will play Bowdoin College for the NESCAC Championship on Sunday, Nov. 5.

Scoring a late goal with less than nine minutes remaining tells of a close game, and it was. The Cardinals went stat for stat with the Mammoths through the first half. While the Mammoths held the shooting edge 5-4 through the first, the Cardinals dug in their heels and refused to budge.

Molly Brumbach '26 made two saves in the first 45 minutes as she shut down Amherst's offensive titans Precious Novidzro and Patience Kum. Still, the Cardinals forced Mammoths goalkeeper Mika Fisher to turn them down three times as Kerenza Leahey '27 and Riley Buehler '26 both managed a shot on goal.

The Cardinals controlled the final 15 minutes of the half, allowing the Mammoths little time to regain possession anywhere near the midfield. With less than 10 minutes on the clock, Zoey Fagnan '26 took a battle with Novidzro into the right corner of the Mammoths zone before sending the ball cross field to Lina Rodriguez '24 then Waverly Meyers '26 who snapped the ball on Fisher. Both teams entered the half scoreless.

The Mammoths opened the second half much like the Cardinals ended the first, unwavering in front of the goal. At the 62^nd minute Novidro took a corner kick for the Mammoths and inserted the ball into the scrum that knocked it off the post and eventually back to Novidzro who took a high shot on goal. Two minutes later Novidzro knocked the ball on the Cardinals again with Brumbach making the save.

Through an onslaught of offensive power by the Mammoths, the Cardinals defense continued their season long prowess in front of Brumbach. Seeing Kum making her way down the field, Tori Rideau-Winds '26 and Caty Clements '25 doubled up and shut down Kum just to the side of the box and sent the ball back up into the Mammoths end.

The goal that won the game was kickstarted by Kum bringing the ball down the right line and taking the first shot with Brumbach making the save. Brumbach cleared the ball, but Ally Degan was quick to it and hit the back left for the game-winner.

Brumbach finished the afternoon in goal with three saves. Fisher made four saves for the Mammoths.

The Cardinals totaled 10 goal scorers this season as Meyers and Katie O'Connell '25 led the Cardinals with five goals and an assist for 11 points and two game-winning goals each. Buehler totaled four goals and Audrey Lavey '23, Rodriguez, and Stefanie Stoj '26 all recorded three apiece. Lavey recorded a team-high 12 points and six assists that ranked second in the NESCAC. Lavey also ranked third in the NESCAC in shots on goal (25) and fifth in total shots (2.82 per game). Starting all 17 games this season were Lavey, Meyers, Rideau-Winds, Clements, and Serena Sink '24.

In goal Brumbach finishes with a 2-3-6 record in 11 starts. Brumbach totaled 71 saves with a .899 save percentage. Brumbach also earned four shutouts with eight goals against. In the NESCAC Brumbach ranked first in saves (.899 save percentage), saves per game (5.46), second in goals against average (.660), and fourth in shutouts. Juliette Vemmer '25 went 5-1-0 overall in six starts, totaling 21 saves with a .875 save percentage and three goals against. Vemmer took home two shutouts.

Head coach Eva Meredith completes her 20^th season at the helm of the women's soccer program with a standing 118-133-45 record.