This Fall Family Weekend, just over 3600 fans packed into Alumni stadium and the surrounding hills for Middlebury football’s fourth game of the season. The Panthers entered the contest riding a two game win streak after a successful weekend on the road at Colby.
The Panthers received the opening kickoff to begin the game. However, Amherst quickly turned the momentum in their favor, recovering the football on Middlebury’s 15-yard line after a strip sack on Middlebury’s opening drive. The Mammoths capitalized on the play with a three-yard rushing touchdown for the game’s first tally. After a Middlebury three-and-out, Amherst went on to finish the quarter with a 10-play, 64-yard drive to go up by 14 points.
At the start of the second quarter, Matthew Piechota ’27 came away with a significant interception, bringing the Panthers faithfully to their feet. Later in the quarter, Middlebury advanced into Mammoth territory following a 40-yard reception by Mike Ahonen ’26. The Panthers failed to convert on third and 11, but came away with a 28-yard field goal from Tony Wang ’26. Amherst responded with a field goal of their own to close out the half up 14.
“Amherst was a very good team. Their QB was talented and made multiple key plays for them,” defensive back Charlie Grant ’27 said, describing the first half. “It’s a great reminder of how balanced the league is — we need to come ready to play every Saturday.”
Amherst scored on successive drives to start the second half, taking a 27–3 lead. Middlebury responded in the fourth quarter with a seven-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in a 23-yard touchdown reception by Parker Loupessis ’27 — the first of the junior wideout’s career.
On the Panthers’ next drive, Brian Moran ’26 found Gus Parker ’27 for a 28-yard touchdown, bringing Parker to a career-high nine receptions for 88 yards.
With only 1:57 to play and down by 10, Middlebury would need a Herculean comeback to secure a win. A flicker of hope came when Moran found Brian Olson ’28 for 39 yards, coming within just 14 yards of the Amherst endzone, but a fumble recovered by Amherst sealed the Panthers’ fate. The Mammoths took a knee to come away with a 27–17 victory, bringing Middlebury to a 2–2 season record.
While the loss at home was a tough blow for Middlebury’s NESCAC hopes, the team was proud of their fight and could leave the game with some positives.
“Our effort and competitiveness were never in question. When you get into holes, the easy way out is to quit. That’s never an option with this team. We continued to fight and got ourselves in a position to have a chance near the end,” Grant remarked.
“Defensively, we did a better job containing the quarterback. Our goal is to get the ball back to our offense, we know the playmakers we have on that side of the ball,” linebacker Michael Votta ’27 added.
The Panthers go on the road next week to face a 3–1 Williams team in a must-win game. Middlebury must avoid another slow start while maintaining their high end-of-game energy to position themselves for a victory. The kickoff is at 2:00 p.m. next Saturday in Williamstown.
