Mules were stubborn with the lead Colby kicked off semis with a bang, then kicked back

Author: Emma Gardner

On Monday, March 10, the women's hockey team learned that winning is not everything - at least in the NESCAC championship. After an unexpected loss to Colby in the semifinals of the NESCAC championship by a score of 3-2 in overtime on Saturday, March 8, the Panthers believed their chance of competing in the NCAA Division III tournament was all but lost. At noon on Monday, however, the team received word that its impressive performance during the regular season had earned it an at-large bid to play in the championship after all. In addition to this heartening news, the women learned that they are to play the quarterfinal round against Manhattanville on the Panthers' home ice at Kenyon Arena.

With this week's considerable surge in their morale, the women look to last Saturday's game as a tough lesson in aggression rather than a devastating loss. Though they spent the week leading up to NESCACs with a complete focus on the Colby system, watching game tapes in practice and mastering Colby's style of play, nothing could prepare the Panthers for Laura Anning's NESCAC record-setting goal scored 15 seconds into the first period of the game. Just 1:14 later, Colby's Dana Yerigan earned another point for her team that gave the Mules the confidence to stand up to the Panthers.

At 17:23, 2008 NESCAC Player of the Year Annmarie Cellino '09 put Middlebury on the scoreboard with the assistance of the conference's Rookie of the Year Anna McNally '11 on the power play. Randi Dumont '09 tied the game 4:37 into the second period, instilling renewed hope into the hearts of the Middlebury fans who had braved the treacherous roads to come out and watch the top-seeded Panthers play.

Still, the team failed to rally sufficiently as almost 50 shots on Colby's goal yielded only two successful breakthroughs. While the Panthers were quick to recognize Colby's game plan of "packing" its defense around the net and creating a human wall around goaltender Lacey Brown, their difficulty lay in figuring out a way to infiltrate the goal.

"We had great opportunities and didn't take advantage of our shots," said Lani Wright '10, who is ranked fourth among the nation's Division III goaltenders but watched the game from the bench. The Mules, on the other hand, "capitalized on their chances and pounced on our mistakes," said Wright

The third period came and went as an unrelenting contest for the net continued well into overtime, and tensions accumulated on the ice. Players from the Amherst and Trinity teams - who were scheduled to play later that day - filed into the arena to watch the action after learning that the meeting they had expected was in fact turning out to be a different game.

It was Colby rookie Liz Osgood who ended the game by netting the third and final point for her team. This one snuck past goaltender Lexi Bloom '11 on the power play, 13:16 into overtime.

Ultimately, "their system worked well against our system," said Ashley Bairos '10, who added that, "we're going to learn our lesson and not make the same mistakes again."

Colby suffered a crushing 7-1 defeat at the hands of the Amherst Lady Jeffs the following afternoon, and this loss may well have been a result of Saturday's exhausting game against the Panthers. "We played hard, we played with heart and we gave it everything we had," said Wright.

Now that they have secured the coveted bid for a chance at the national championship, the Panthers have high aspirations for the rest of the season - while at the same time maintaining a realistic view of what lies ahead. Because Middlebury is ranked higher than Manhattanville in regular-season results, the game is scheduled at home, and the prospect of playing in front of their fans presents an exciting morale boost for the women.

"This game is going to be a huge battle," said Bairos. "We will not let Saturday happen again and when we get a chance to score, it will go in the net."

"Going to NCAAs was highly uncertain," continued Bairos, "and we're lucky to be going, not to mention playing at home. We have been given a gift, and we will definitely be taking advantage of this opportunity."