On Saturday, the women’s soccer team had a crucial NESCAC win against Hamilton. 
First year Kiersten Turner scored the game’s only goal off an assist from senior Molly Popolizio  in the 23rd minute of play, securing the former’s position as the team’s lead scorer with five goals this season. Despite Hamilton pressuring Bowdoin with ten shots in the second half, the Polar Bears held their ground, thanks to first year Bridget McCarthy’s four saves to secure the shutout and end the game in a 1-0 victory.
The following day, the Polar Bears traveled to Amherst to take on the 12th ranked Lord Jeffs. Amherst was ultimately able to outplay and outscore the Bears, netting the highest number of goals the Polar Bears have allowed yet this season in a 4-1 decision. 
Throughout the game, Bowdoin had many opportunities to score, with Amherst’s keeper denying shot after shot. In the 69th minute, the Polar Bears was finally able to find the back of the net with a goal from first year Audrey Phillips. Despite the goal, the Bears never recovered from the deficit, sinking to  to 9-3-0 overall (5-3-0 NESCAC) while the Jeffs improved to 9-1-1 overall (6-1-1 NESCAC).
At this point in the season, Williams, Amherst and Middlebury occupy the top three ranks in the NESCAC, with Bowdoin at fifth place.  As the Polar Bears head into the playoffs, the final two NESCAC games will be crucial for the team’s standings. If Bowdoin can beat both Trinity and Tufts, they will improve to fourth place in the conference and have home-field advantage in the NESCAC quarterfinals. 
The next two games will be tough for the Bears; Trinity is seeded just behind Bowdoin in the conference and, according to coach Brianne Weaver, “Tufts struggled early in the season with many injured players; a lot of those players are back, and [Bowdoin] can’t take them for granted.”
The first of these two important games will be at noon on Saturday against Trinity for homecoming.