ON THE MOVE. Brian Dill moves ball up field during Saturday's NCAA men's soccer match.
 --- John Risley photo

AMHERST, Mass. - After battling to a 0-0 tie through two overtimes, Amherst took a 4-2 advantage over Western New England College in penalty kicks to advance in the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Tournament Saturday afternoon (Nov. 15) at rainy Hitchcock Field.

The Lord Jeffs will meet St. Lawrence (a 3-2 winner over MIT) at 1:00 p.m. Sunday (Nov. 16) in the second round.

Freshman goalkeeper Lennard Lovacs (Wolfersdorf, Germany) extended the hosts' season by making two critical saves in the penalty kicks session. He made one save in regulation and overtime.

Amherst (13-3-2) held a slim 7-6 advantage in shots in the defensive battle. It was physical at times with 23 fouls, including 15 for Amherst, and each team received a yellow card in the opening half.

Western New England College junior keeper Kyle Bak (Cumberland, RI) stopped two shots to finish with an impressive 8-1-4 record.

OUT OF MY WAY. Tony Rosa battles for loose ball against Lord Jeff defenders. --- John Risley photo

This was the third consecutive year that Western New England College and Amherst collided in the national tournament.

WNEC ended the Lord Jeffs' campaign in 2006 with a 1-0 win at Hitchcock Field while Amherst rallied for a 3-2 victory over the Golden Bears last year at Gooding Field, the turf facility on the Amherst campus. Both these matches were second round contests.

Western New England College, ranked 12th in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Poll, finished its season with a 16-1-6 record and was unbeaten in its final 22 matches after a season-opening loss against New Paltz.