WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- Three freshmen were among the five goal scorers for the Williams College women's soccer team in a 5-0 win over Trinity on Saturday.

 

Natasha Albaneze had a goal and an assist for the Ephs (3-0), who avenged a 2-0 loss to the Bantams in 2013.

 

Danielle Sim scored the game-winner on an assist from Albaneze in the 35th minute.

 

Hanna Kaeser, Audrey Thomas, Kriste Kirshe and Albaneze tacked on goals.

 

"We know our strength is our depth, and to know that we can have player after player come off the bench and increase the tempo of play is a huge lift for us," Williams coach Michelyne Pinard said. "Trinity is a great team. They do a great job keeping the ball and that can be frustrating, but we kept our heads out there and performed very well. This team wants to be great, and greatness is earned every minute. They wanted to keep the scoreboard clean, and that's all the motivation they needed. I didn't have to say anything to them."

 

Hannah Van Wetter and Tressa Palcheck split time in the Williams goal. Van Wetter stopped three shots in 67 minutes, 19 seconds.

 

Williams (2-0 NESCAC) host MIT on Sunday 1 p.m.

 

MEN'S SOCCER

 

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- Matt Muralles scored twice and set up a third goal to lead the Williams men's soccer team to a 3-1 win over Trinity on Saturday.

 

The Ephs (3-0, 2-0 NESCAC) scored first when Michael Madding set up Murrales midway through the first half, but the Bantams responded with a goal in the 50th minute.

 

Muralles scored the game-winner with help from Tom Young in the 75th minute, and three minutes later, Muralles set up J.C. Bahr-de Stefano to provide the final margin.

 

Christian Alcom stopped four shots to earn the win for Williams, which hosts Babson on Sunday at 1:30.

 

CROSS COUNTRY

 

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The Williams men’s cross country team kicked off its competitive season Saturday morning with a strong finish at the Saratoga XC Invitational at Saratoga Spa State Park.

 

The Ephs made the most of their efforts with a second-place finish out of a strong field of fourteen teams.  St. Lawrence University won the meet by a fourteen-point margin, placing five runners among the top ten finishers.  New York University rounded out the top three.

 

Williams head coach Pete Farwell was impressed with his team’s performance and its execution of the race plan.

 

“We were careful not to get out too fast at the start,” he said.  “Quite a lot of our runners moved up in position throughout the race, then finished strong.”

 

Williams senior Colin Cotton ’15 was the individual champion of the meet, running a course record time of 18 minutes, 46 seconds on the 6-kilometer course. Not far behind was Bijan Mazaheri ’16, who finished third in 19:01.

 

 “Colin looked tremendous in his win,” Farwell said, “and it was great to see Bijan position himself well within the top pack.”

 

The Ephs are off next week and will resume their season on September 27 with the annual Purple Valley Classic.  This will be the first of four Williams home meets to be held at Mount Greylock Regional School this season. The Purple Valley Classic traditionally draws some of the best teams from the Northeast, and this year’s field includes nationally ranked regional rivals MIT, Middlebury, Colby, Amherst, and Tufts.  Many teams will be using this meet as a chance to preview the course for the 2014 NCAA New England Regional Championship, to be held at Mount Greylock on Nov. 15.

 

FIELD HOCKEY

 

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- Annie VanWagenen and Rachel Brissette scored second-half goals to lead the Williams College field hockey team to a 2-1 win over Trinity on Saturday.

 

The Ephs (3-0, 2-0 NESCAC) beat the Bantams for the first time in seven years.

 

Margaret Draper made one save behind a strong Williams defense, anchored by Jaclyn Porfilo.

 

"Katie Gallop did a good job keeping their forwards from capitalizing in the circle," Williams coach Alix Barrale said. "Emma Grauberger shut down the wings with excellent block tackles.

 

"I'm most impressed with our tenacity and determination as a team. Everyone was engaged and invested in every play, whether they were on the sideline or on the playing field."

 

Williams travels to Mount Holyoke on Wednesday.