Worcester Polytechnic Institute

WORCESTER -- Genevieve Caruso (Greenwich, CT) scored the lone goal midway through the first overtime, lifting nationally ranked Amherst to a dramatic 1-0 victory over host WPI Tuesday evening in a non-conference matchup between two teams that won games in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
 
The Mammoths, who are ranked 17th in the most recent Penn Monto/NFHCA Division III Top 25, improve to 3-1 overall, while the Crimson and Gray, who were facing their third straight 2025 NCAA Tournament opponent, fall to 1-4 on the season.
 
After a scoreless 60 minutes of regulation, the Engineers had one final opportunity early in overtime when Violet Westburg (Falmouth, ME) put a shot on goal at 63:14, but Grace Puchalski (Waxhaw, NC) made the save. Amherst answered at the other end, with Myles Lakin (Reading, MA) stopping a shot from Emma Zhang (St. Louis, MO) before Caruso buried the rebound just two seconds later to send the Mammoths home a winner at 65:34.
 
Amherst had the better of the early possession in the opening quarter, but Lakin kept the Mammoths off the scoreboard with a pair of quality saves. He turned aside a shot from Devon Watson (Trumbull, CT) with 10:04 remaining before making another strong stop on Bella Kim (Vienna, VA) with 2:40 left in the period, and the teams entered the second quarter scoreless.
 
The second quarter featured more pressure from Amherst, which earned four penalty corners and put three shots toward the cage. Lakin denied Caroline Busler (Greenwich, CT) with a save at 20:14, while WPI earned a pair of penalty corners of its own as the defensive battle continued into halftime.
 
The Engineers continued to battle defensively in a scoreless third quarter. Lakin made another save on Caruso, while WPI earned two penalty corners and Ella Reeners (Windham, NH) added a shot, but neither team could break through entering the final 15 minutes.
 
The Mammoths applied relentless pressure throughout the fourth quarter, earning five penalty corners and putting 11 shots toward the WPI cage. Lakin repeatedly answered the challenge, making saves on attempts by Kim, Avery Hadfield (Sherborn, MA) and Ella Kang (Vancouver, BC) before turning aside three shots in the final nine seconds, including two from Kim and one from Kang, to preserve the scoreless draw.

Lakin turned in a standout performance in goal for the Engineers, making a season-best 11 saves on Amherst's 12 shots on goal, including a series of stops during the Mammoths' furious fourth-quarter attack. It was the second time this season and eighth time in the junior's career that the netminder has amassed a double-digit save total.  Puchalski made one save to record the shutout, stopping WPI's lone shot on target before Caruso's overtime winner. Amherst finished with an 18-2 advantage in shots and a 14-4 edge in penalty corners.
 
The Engineers return to action Thursday evening, heading down Park Avenue and over Chandler Street for a 7pm non-conference matchup against city rival Worcester State. Amherst resumes NESCAC play Saturday, entertaining No. 8 Middlebury at 11am.