End-to-end basket ends a thriller

Author: Dan Stevens

Déjà vu was the zeitgeist on Jan. 19 in Pepin Gymnasium, where the women's basketball team found itself battling to the buzzer, just as they had the previous night when it defeated Colby 64-62. The adrenaline rush brought on by the victory returned on Saturday and the Panthers again found themselves racing against the clock. The Panthers were able to keep the seven-time NESCAC champs from Bowdoin within striking distance, but gave up the game-winning basket with one second remaining to suffer their first NESCAC loss of the season 54-51.

Friday's game against Colby marked the opening game of NESCAC play. The Panthers entered the game with an 8-4 record to match last year's similar non-conference results. Middlebury was also returning to campus after dropping a game at Rensselaer 62-55 on Jan. 12. Colby entered the weekend with a 3-8 record, but as soon as the first whistle blew, records were out the window as a few highly uncharacteristic events determined the game's outcome.

Colby's Alison Cappelloni led all scorers with 27 points including a Steve Kerr-like performance shooting 7-for-11 from three-point range. Normally a 16 percent three-point shooter, Cappelloni found a spark against the Panthers. The Panthers also reversed a trend, though in the wrong direction, shooting only 30.6 percent from the field in the first half, 21.7 percent worse than their first half total against Southern Vermont on Jan. 10.

Middlebury controlled the ball for much of the game and entered halftime with a 30-28 lead. Coach Noreen Pecsok's halftime talk must have lifted the Panther spirits as they rushed back on the floor, opening the half with an 8-0 run. The Mules marched back and eventually took the lead from the Panthers midway through the half. Middlebury found itself trailing 62-58 with about a minute left, and the game appeared out of reach. Suddenly, Pepin came to life as co-captain Katie Fisher '08 sank a three to bring the Panthers to within one.

Following an errant in-bound play, in which a jump ball gave the Panthers the ball, Lani Young '08 made a lay-up with five seconds left, drawing a foul in the process. After completing the three-point play, the Panthers held on for one last desperation attempt by the Mules to tie the game, but a long shot fell short and the Panthers rushed the floor to the loud applause of the Middlebury fans.

Saturday's match-up against Bowdoin continued in this dramatic mold as the Polar Bears looked to move to 2-0 in conference play. "In past years, NESCAC teams have perceived Bowdoin as a near-invincible foe," said Fisher. "This year marks a profound power shift. Instead of two or three teams dominating the league, almost every NESCAC women's basketball team has a very real opportunity to capture the title."

With that in mind, the Panthers came ready to attack the powerhouse Polar Bears. Middlebury came out firing, scoring the game's first seven points and forcing Bowdoin to call a timeout. The game continued in its streaky nature, with both teams garnering substantial leads and subsequently letting the other team back in the game. Middlebury led 25-23 at half but continued to exchange the lead throughout the final 20 minutes. With 20 seconds left, the score was 51-49 and Bowdoin had the ball. Just when the bout appeared out-of-reach, Bowdoin threw a disastrous inbounds pass that cascaded out-of-bounds. Middlebury responded with a give-and-go lob pass between Fisher and Emily Johnson '09 that led to an acrobatic Fisher lay-up and a tie game with five seconds remaining.

Though overtime appeared imminent, Bowdoin shocked the assembled crowd with a coast-to-coast lay-up by Alexa Kaubris, who made the basket and was fouled by Young with one second remaining. Following Kaubris' successful free throw attempt, the Panthers failed to get off a shot as time expired.

"We were balanced, played a lot of people and had great intensity all weekend," said Pecsok. "Now we have to sustain that."

Middlebury, now 9-5 (1-1 in the NESCAC), will head to Amherst and Trinity on Jan. 26 and 27.