The Middlebury men’s soccer team will head to the NESCAC semifinals after upsetting the Bowdoin Bears in a thriller, extending their win streak to four games. Addressing his team’s underdog label in the upcoming playoffs, center back Pablo Gonzalez ’26 gave a clear answer: “We like being the villains.”
The Vegas sportsbooks would have had third-seeded Bowdoin winning this game. They boasted a better record, were playing at home, and had not conceded a goal since September. But Middlebury wasn’t fazed, scoring two goals in the last 17 minutes to win 2–1. The lesson here? Don’t count this team out, and never bet on sports.
The Bears scored first in the 19th minute from a free kick. Launched from the midfield, the ball bounced around in the box before finding the Panther’s net. Your turn, Middlebury.
With the season on the line, Orlando Cavaceppi-Dove ’29 carried the ball from the midfield before delivering a perfect pass into the box to Will Sawin ’27, who slipped the ball under the Bowdoin keeper. By the way, Sawin is chasing his second championship of the year, after winning USL League 2 with Vermont Green FC over the summer.
Seven minutes later, Bowdoin conceded a freekick on the left side of the box. In preparation, the Bears keeper set up so far to the right he could have touched the goalpost, offering up the entire left side of the goal. In a moment of magic, Colin Dugan ’27 curled the ball over the four-man wall and squeezed it down into the top left corner.
Dugan wheeled away to the corner flag while the rest of the team hopped, skipped, and jumped their way over to pounce on him. Joey Waterman ’26 joined a few seconds after a long, joyous sprint from his goal. Meanwhile, Bowdoin fans stood as rigid as the pine trees overlooking the field.
“It was easily the best goal I have ever scored in my career in terms of the timing, scenario, and the overall shot itself,” Dugan told The Campus.
Eight minutes later, the comeback was complete — Middlebury was heading back to the NESCAC semifinals for the sixth straight year.
Next weekend, the Panthers face number one seeded Tufts, where they’ll look to play villain again. A win would see them reach the finals on Sunday.
“I expect us to go into Tufts full of confidence and desperate to get our revenge from the regular season,” Dugan promised. “Then give it our all on Sunday and hopefully come back to Vermont with some silverware.”
