Northampton boys lacrosse defeats Amherst for first time since 2019 (photos) (2025)

NORTHAMPTON — For the first time since 2019, Northampton boys lacrosse came out on top against Amherst.

The Blue Devils improved to 5-0 with a 9-5 win over the Hurricanes on their home turf Wednesday night. They snapped a five-year losing streak in the matchup and continued their impressive run to start the season.

“Super pleased,” Northampton coach Charlie Edwards said of his team. “Offense, defense, across the board, were doing the things we needed to. Amherst was the best team we’ve played so far, in all honesty, and we needed a challenge like that, but proud of how they stepped up.”

Amherst, now 4-2 on the season, couldn’t overcome its slow start despite a hat trick from Tre Bowman and a solid second-quarter push.

Five Northampton players—including four seniors and a sophomore—scored a goal in the win. Seniors Jack Carpenter (3 goals, 1 assist), Jackson Oravec (hat trick), and Keller Mahoney (1 goal, 2 assists) led the way offensively for the Blue Devils.

“Versatility is a big thing we’re preaching,” Edwards said. “We try to have positionless offense; frankly, we’re lucky to have it. We have the depth, and we want to have everybody contribute.”

Goalie Henry Fallon’s early saves helped preserve the lead and set the tone.

“He’s huge,” Edwards said. “To have those doorstep ones that he eats up, it gives us the confidence to press out. We were a little more aggressive than maybe we should be otherwise, but he backs us up when we get beat.”

Northampton came out strong in the opening quarter, building a 2-0 lead thanks to early goals from Oravec and Mahoney. The scoring picked up in the second quarter, with Carpenter—a Super 7 standout—extending Northampton’s lead before Amherst responded.

Tri Nguyen put Amherst on the board with a quick strike, and junior Tre Bowman followed with back-to-back goals, cutting the lead to just one at 4-3. But the Blue Devils finished the half strong, getting goals from sophomore Eli Reid and senior Nick Biddle to take a 5-3 advantage into the break.

Carpenter opened the second half with his second goal of the night, but Oravec stole the show in the third quarter.

The senior attacker caught fire, scoring a hat trick in just over five minutes to help push Northampton’s lead to 8-4. Bowman answered for Amherst with a highlight-reel goal—his third of the night on a behind-the-back finish.

But it wasn’t enough to swing momentum.

“We knew what kind of defense they were going to play coming in,” Oravec said. “We saw the zone, we saw the gaps. We knew where we had to be on the field, and we executed at the end of the day. We did what worked.”

Sawyer Ferro added a late goal for Amherst to make it 8-5, but Northampton closed the door in the final seconds with a last-second goal from Carpenter to seal the 9-5 win.

The Hurricanes will look to regroup and bounce back against Wahconah (1-3) on Monday, April 21, after falling short against an undefeated Northampton team that looks every bit the contender they were projected to be.

Northampton continues to lead the Pioneer League with a perfect record and will face Monson (0-6) on Friday, April 18.

When asked about the driving force behind Northampton’s undefeated start, Edwards pointed to the team’s veteran presence and cohesion, which had built over time.

“This team, in particular, has a lot of guys who have played since their freshman year,” Edwards said. “So they’ve had four years of real varsity contributions, and they’re really experienced and feel comfortable with it.”