With the clock ticking on his Amherst College soccer career, Juneau’s Jackson Lehnhart is determined to soak up every moment.
The senior made sure the defending national champions lived to fight another day after he scored the second goal in a 3-0 win over Daniel Webster in the third round of the NCAA D-III Tournament.
“It’s pretty crazy to think about how little time I have left playing, which makes this run and these remaining games so meaningful,” Lehnhart said. “Sunday’s game meant a lot because it meant I have one more week playing with the guys. Couldn’t be more excited.”
Amherst (17-1-1) advanced to the NCAA’s Sweet 16, where it will face Brandeis University (12-5-1) on Saturday in Amherst, Massachusetts.
This is the seventh-straight year the Purple and White have advanced this far.
“I think the fact that we’ve been through this before is really helpful,” Lehnhart said. “We gotten really good at playing back-to-back over weekends both physically and mentally and that is huge when it comes to the NCAA Tournament.
“Now that this group has experienced how special a run can be, I think that has provided a form of motivation because we want to experience it again.”
Lehnhart, of Juneau-Douglas High School fame, has a knack for netting goals in the NCAA Tournament. He scored the tying goal in last year’s national championship game, a 2-1 win over Loras. And he did it again Sunday – his fifth goal of the season.
“When I look back at our season, we have had tons of guys step up in big moments, and when you get the chance to make a difference you have to capitalize,” Lehnhart said. “Sunday that happened to be me but it very well could have been someone else.”
