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(03/23/16 10:42pm)
The Middlebury women’s lacrosse team continued its early-season success on Saturday, March 19 winning its home opener over Wesleyan. The team scored six goals within the first nine minutes of the game and never looked back as the Panthers drubbed the Wesleyan Cardinals by a score of 13-5.
Middlebury established control of the game right out of the gates as senior co-captain Alli Sciarretta ’16 tallied two goals within the first 2:37 of the first half to give the Panthers an early 2-0 advantage. Claire Russell ’18 followed with a beautiful finish off a feed from Chrissy Ritter ’16. The Panthers maintained momentum and mounted a scoring streak as the first hard continued.
Bea Eppler ’17 found the back of the net 41 seconds later followed by Bridget Instrum ’16 to make it a 5-0 game. The scoring did not stop there as the Panthers took a 9-1 lead into the half thanks to a pair of goals from both Sciarretta and Ritter.
Wesleyan ended the shutout with 1:07 left in the half on a goal from Martha Harding. Defensively, the Panthers dominated the half allowing only three shots on goal the entire half. The half ended with a score of 9-1 in favor of Middlebury.
The impregnable defense can be attributed to the “confidence in [the team’s] goalies as well as their confidence in each other, which has allowed the team to play with a lot of intensity and take some risks that [they] may not take otherwise,” Maggie Caputi ’16 said.
The Panthers came out strong to start the second half with a 3-0 run. Ritter got the scoring going with a goal 1:19 into the second half while the Cardinals were down a player. Megan Griffin ’16 set up the next two goals, with her first assist going to Eppler and the second to Russell to establish a 12-1 lead with 16:10 remaining.
Middlebury’s run ended with 15:33 left in the contest with a goal from Wesleyan. Unfortunately, the Cardinals were able to finally break through the defensive wall and score two more goals, resulting in a score of 12-4 with 6:06 left in the contest.
Jenna McNicholas ’19 responded for the Panthers, tallying her first career goal with 1:17 left in the second half to conclude the Panther scoring effort on the day.
Caputi was at the helm of the defense throughout the contest, causing four turnovers and scooping six ground balls. Hollis Perticone ’18 contributed to the win by recording a team-high four draw controls.
Tough defense and key saves between the pipes from Madeleine Kinker ’16 and Kate Furber ’19 allowed the Panthers to cruise to the eventual 13-5 win over Wesleyan.
“The success of any defensive unit is dependent on the strength of the goalie, and [Kinker and Furber] have been extremely effective and integral to our wins,” Caputi stated.
Middlebury’s dominant offensive performance was reflected in shots, with the Panthers outshooting the Cardinals by a 29-11 margin. Middlebury also held a slight advantage in ground balls, scooping 25 compared to Wesleyan’s 23. The Panthers were strong from the faceoff-X, controlling 13-7 draws on the afternoon.
Fourth-ranked Middlebury (5-0, 3-0) will return to action Saturday, March 26, when they host Bowdoin at 12 p.m. The Panthers beat Bowdoin 14-8 in regular season play last year before experiencing a tough 14-8 loss to the Polar Bears in the NESCAC semifinal matchup.
“The team is excited for Bowdoin this weekend,” Eppler said. “[We look] forward to working hard this week in preparation for Bowdoin. This game is going to be competitive and will test [the team] in new ways which will allow us to gain a better understanding of where we stand in the NESCAC.”
Following that, the Panthers will travel to Pennsylvania on Tuesday, March 29 to play a non-conference game against Dickinson. The team will then travel to Maryland, where they will face Stevenson in another non-conference matchup.
(03/17/16 2:53am)
The Middlebury women’s lacrosse team continued their success with two wins this past weekend. Middlebury defeated Tufts 17-9 on Saturday, March 12 looking for vengeance from last year’s loss, and then beat MIT 19-7 the following day in a non-conference collision. The Panthers improved their overall record to 4-0 and are currently ranked fourth in the nation.
“We had a big week this past week with three games over five days and are so excited about how we played,” Team Captain Laurel Pascal ’16 said. “What is so great about our team is that we have so much depth and talent, so it was truly a team effort.”
Said team effort began with Saturday’s conference matchup against Tufts. The Panthers dominated the first half, scoring the first six goals of the game, two each by Bridget Instrum ’16 and Bea Eppler ’17, to take a commanding lead just 11 minutes in. Mary O’Connell ’17 assisted on two of the scores.
However, the Jumbos came roaring back, scoring four of the next five goals to pull within three, 7-4, with time left in the half. The Panthers quickly pounced by scoring another three, concluding the opening half with a 10-4 lead. Instrum started the burst with back-to-back goals.
Again Tufts did not accept defeat and responded immediately in the second half, scoring the first two goals to make it 10-6. Once again, the Panthers fired back by scoring four of the next five goals in quick succession, bringing the game to 14-7.
While Tufts retorted with two goals, this was not enough to beat the Panthers as they finished the game with three more goals, thrashing Tufts 17-9. Pascal and Eppler had three goals and O’Connell finished with four assists, earning her NESCAC Player of the Week honors. Alli Sciarretta ’16 also netted five goals in the Panthers victory.
Riding high off revenge against Tufts, the Panthers returned to action the following day against MIT for a non-conference game. Similar to the Tufts game, the Panthers dominated on the way to a commanding 19-7 victory.
The game started with a spate of goals, with both teams combining for three goals in the span of 39 seconds. The match was closest with 9:07 in the first half at a score of 6-5. However, that was short lived. The Panthers clenched down on the defensive end of the field by not allowing a goal the rest of the half, all the while scoring the final six goals. Kate Hodgson ’16 scored twice, while Hollis Perticone ’18, Sciarretta and Hailey Cosseboom ’17 each netted one to finish the first half with a 12-5 score.
Middlebury continued to dominate in the second half, scoring three more goals. Building on the scoring, the Panthers led 15-5 with 17:45 left in the game. MIT tried to respond but only mustered two more goals, and Middlebury won 19-7.
Defensively the Panthers once again gave an incredible performance lead by Maggie Caputi ’16 who scooped up four ground balls and Evie Keating ’18 who had three ground balls and caused a pair of turnovers.
“The team has been focusing on aggressive defense and dynamic attack, which has paid off . . . and has given [the Panthers] a big step up against [their] opponents” Pascal said.
After such a dominant start to the season (and on the road no less), it should be a near fever pitch environment when the Panthers host NESCAC opponent Wesleyan at noon on Saturday, March 19th in their home opener.
(03/10/16 4:01am)
The Middlebury women’s lacrosse team opened its season on the road with a 17-6 win over Connecticut College on Saturday, March 5 and a 17-5 win at Rensselaer on Tuesday, March 8.
Saturday’s matchup was the women’s first contest without the leadership of former Head Coach Missy Foote, who led the program for 34 seasons. In her final season, Foote guided the team to a 16-4 record and an appearance in the NCAA Final Four. Replacing Coach Foote is Kate Livesay ’03, who returns to Middlebury after serving as head coach of the Trinity women’s lacrosse team from 2010-2014 before joining the Panthers as an assistant coach in 2015. Coach Livesay commented on her first win as Middlebury’s head coach following Saturday’s victory.
“[The win is a] nice affirmation of all the hard work over preseason,” Livesay said. “You never know exactly what team is going to show up when there is no game to scout prior to playing a new team. For us, it was important that we were able to have success in many of the new things we were trying and to have a win on top of that is great.”
Middlebury’s win was a team effort with nine different players scoring goals. However, the undeniable star of the game was captain Laurel Pascal ’16, who matched Conn. College’s entire scoring effort by adding six of her own on the day.
Pascal was not the only midfielder who had an outstanding game. Alli Sciarretta ’16, Hollis Perticone ’18 and Bridget Instrum ’16 each finished the game with two goals apiece, while Mary O’Connell ’17 dished out six assists in addition to scoring a goal herself. The scoring was rounded out by Chrissy Ritter ’16, Bea Eppler ’17, Hailey Cosseboom ’17 and Emma McDonagh ’19, who each contributed a goal to the win.
Middlebury established a fast pace early on in the contest, quickly surging to a 5-0 lead. Conn. College responded with two goals to round out the score at 5-2. From that point, the Panthers dominated the game, mounting a 7-0 run to close out the first half.
Leading 12-2 at the half, the Panthers kept the pressure on Connecticut College by maintaining a strong offensive effort throughout the remainder of the game.
First-year Goaltender Kate Furber ’19 played the majority of the game, recording four saves in her collegiate debut. Madeleine Kinker ’16 finished the game in the net for the Panthers. Livesay believes that Furber is going to make an immediate impact for the Panthers.
“She is very aggressive, vocal and quick. She also anticipates very well,” Livesay said.
The coach expects Furber to be a “big presence” within the team’s high tempo defense as the season progresses. Outside of the cage, the Panther defense was anchored by strong performances from Maggie Caputi ’16 and Jessie Yorke ’17.
“Defense was the strength of our team that day,” Livesay added.
Having an extra week of preseason before their first game this year allowed the team to “both mentally and physically prepare for the season,” Kate Hodgson ’16 said. Several members of the team believe that the extended preseason preparation was an integral part of their win this past weekend.
“As a whole, we are stronger and faster than we have ever been in past years and I think that comes from our conditioning in preseason,” Eppler said.
On Tuesday, Middlebury dominated Rensselaer from the beginning, jumping out to a 3-0 lead within the first 3:20 of play and cruising to a 17-5 win. Ritter and Sciarretta both scored three goals, while O’Connell assisted on two.
The team will travel to the Boston area this weekend for a doubleheader on Saturday, March 12 against Tufts followed by a second contest on Sunday, March 13 versus MIT. Tufts handed the Panthers one of their four losses last season in a tight game that was decided by a score of 12-11.
(05/06/15 12:37pm)
The fifth-ranked Bowdoin women’s lacrosse team beat the third-ranked Panthers 14-8 in the NESCAC semifinals on Saturday, May 2, at Trinity. Despite the loss, the Middlebury team was given an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament — as well as a first-round bye — when selections were announced on Sunday, May 3.
Fresh off a quarterfinal victory over Colby, the Polar Bears played with great intensity on both sides of the ball. Bowdoin struck quickly scoring the game’s first goal just 1:40 into the first half. From that point on, Bowdoin never trailed once in the game.
Bridget Instrum ’16, who scored three goals in the the first half, tied it for the Panthers when she scored her first goal at 25:22 bringing the score to 1-1. However, the Polar Bears re-seized the lead, rolling off four straight goals before Instrum ended the run with her second goal of the game.
Then it became a back-and-forth scoring battle between Bowdoin and Middlebury. Despite another goal from Instrum followed by goals from Laurel Pascal ’16 and Mary O’Connell ’17, the Panthers went into the second half trailing 8-5.
The second half was a repeat of the first. Bowdoin’s dominating offensive play was supplemented with an all-but-impenetrable defense that allowed the Polar Bears to dominate the second half.
The Polar Bears struck first with a goal that stretched their lead to 9-5. An Alli Sciarretta ’16 goal reduced the deficit to three for Middlebury, but that turned out to be as close as the Panthers would get. From that point it seemed as if nothing went right for the Panthers as Bowdoin went on a 5-0 run bringing the score to 14-6 with 8:00 minutes left in the half. Delania Smith ’17 and Bea Eppler ’17 scored but it was clearly a case of too little and too late, as Middlebury fell by a 14-8 final.
Statistically the game was not as lopsided as the score would indicate. Bowdoin had 25 shots on goal to Middlebury’s 23. The difference was in the goaltending. The Bowdoin goalie simply shut the door on Middlebury, making 11 saves and scooping up three ground balls. By contrast Bowdoin’s offensive attack forced Middlebury to go through three goaltenders with Madeline Kinker ’16 playing the most minutes, allowing 11 goals and making three saves.
By beating Middlebury, Bowdoin ended a 32-game losing streak to the Panthers; it was the first time Bowdoin had beaten Middlebury since 1987.
After the weekend’s action, the NESCAC released its annual all-conference teams, with four Panthers earning recognition from the conference. Pascal and seniors Katie Ritter ’15 and Cat Fowler ’15 were included on the All-NESCAC first team, while O’Connell earned second-team recognition.
Additionally, Middlebury Head Coach Missy Foote — in her 35th and final season as the head women’s lacrosse coach at the College — was recognized as the NESCAC Coach of the Year. It is the sixth such honor for Foote. A 2012 inductee into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame, Foote will surely go down as one of the foremost coaches in the history of the sport when her time at Middlebury comes to a close later this spring.
The Panthers will look to rebound and potentially secure a second round victory in the NCAA tournament this Sunday, May 10 at home on Kohn Field. The Panthers will play the winner of MIT and Regis who meet in a first-round game earlier in the week.
The Panthers have bounced back with a victory after each of their three losses this year. They will need to keep that streak alive this weekend in order to extend their season for at least one more week.
(04/29/15 6:31pm)
After a tough loss to Trinity last weekend, the Panthers came ready to fight on Wednesday, April 22 against Williams and Saturday, April 25 against Amherst.
On Wednesday, the team fought fiercely throughout the game with several lead changes. Bridget Instrum ’16 scored a career high six goals and Catherine Fowler ’15 earned a game-high six draws. These two efforts were assisted by several other contributions, which helped the Panthers to a 13-11 victory against Williams.
The win over Williams solidified the Panthers’ second seed in the NESCAC playoff tournament, setting them up for a quarterfinal matchup with the seventh-seeded Lord Jeffs of Amherst. The Panthers were 9-5 winners during the teams’ lone regular-season matchup back in March.
Saturday against Amherst was once again a blood battle for the Panthers. This NESCAC quarterfinal game, played on Kohn Field, concluded with a 9-8 victory for Middlebury. The game started out with a quick goal from Mary O’Connell ’17, giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead that was answered by a pair of goals by Amherst before Megan Griffin ’16 scored to make it a 2-2 tie. The half followed by two more goals from Amherst and 3 more from Middlebury by Laurel Pascal ’16, Katie Ritter ’15 and Hollis Perticone ’18. The Panthers went into the half leading 5-4.
Amherst, scoring four unanswered goals in the first 11 minutes, dominated the second half. The Lord Jeffs lead 8-5 with 19:10 left in the game.
At that point, Ritter scored an unassisted goal which was the catalyst to lockdown defense and fearless offense by the Panthers.
Alli Sciarretta ’16 followed with a score to bring the score to a one-point deficit. Perticone finished what Ritter had started with two goals to lead the Panthers to a 9-8 wins over Amherst.
Although the Panthers had fewer shots on goals, their draw controls were unmatched by Amherst, which helped send them to victory. Perticone led the team with three goals while Maddie Kinker ’16 once again played a stellar game with six saves in the net.
“Despite being down three goals with 15 minutes left to go, we found a way to refocus themselves and never let each other think we were going to lose the game,” Pascal said. “We did that by playing off each other’s energy and carrying that momentum into the next play when it counted.”
The Panthers head into the semifinals against Bowdoin this Saturday, May at Trinity.
“We played a great game against Bowdoin in the regular season but there were definitely a few things we wanted to work on after our first game against them,” Perticone said. “We know what type of team they are and what it takes to beat them.”
If they win, the Panthers will advance to play either top-ranked Trinity or fourth-ranked Tufts on Sunday at Trinity.
“This week we are really focusing on decision-making and how to play smart in certain situations,” Pascal said. “We are also trying to perfect our offensive plays and how to play to each other’s strengths.”
(04/22/15 1:50pm)
The Middlebury Panthers’ 11 game-winning streak was snapped by number-one Trinity on Saturday, April 18 on Trinity’s Sheppard Field. The 16-7 drubbing extended Trinity’s nation-leading winning streak to 13. It also gave the Bantams sole possession of first place in the NESCAC.
Trinity came out blazing with two quick goals. The Panthers fought back with goals from Mary O’Connell ’17 and Hollis Perticone ’18 to tie the game 2-2 with about 20 minutes to go in the first half. Trinity responded with a trio of unanswered goals to bring the score to 5-2. Bridget Instrum ’16 scored for Middlebury to cut the lead to two, but that was quickly countered by another Trinity goal. A goal from Laurel Pascal ’16 just before halftime made the lead 7-4 Trinity going into the break.
Trinity struck quickly after halftime with four goals to increase the lead to seven at 11-4 with 24:39 left in the game. A response from Middlebury’s Chrissy Ritter ’16 got the Panthers on the scoreboard in the half, but Middlebury could not rally on the defensive end to keep Trinity at bay. Another pair of Bantam goals increased the lead to eight at 13-5. The teams traded goals for the remaining minutes — with Katie Ritter ’15 and Pascal chipped in goals during garbage time — and, at the final whistle, the scoreboard read 16-7 in favor of Trinity.
“We are trying to turn the lopsided loss to Trinity into a learning experience,” Chrissy Ritter said. “We didn’t play to the best of our ability on Saturday and didn’t show Trinity what Middlebury lacrosse is all about. In such a high-intensity game, a lot of our players tried to beat Trinity by themselves.”
Despite the loss, the Panthers are looking forward to the upcoming games and believe that the team will approach the games stronger after the loss to Trinity. Jessie Yorke ’17 agreed with Ritter, saying that the team will need to improve in order to achieve their goals down the road.
“We strayed from playing as a unit,” Yorke said. “We are mentally focused on playing to our strengths. Hopefully the focus on the team game will result in the team bouncing back even stronger.”
Despite the loss, Middlebury is set up well for a playoff run in 2015. Still among the nation’s best teams, the Panthers will look to improve upon last year’s postseason, in which they were upset by Colby in the conference quarterfinals before falling in the NCAA round of 16 to Gettysburg.
“Today and tomorrow we will be working a lot on offensive sets, moving the ball quickly and efficiently as a team, instead of what we did against Trinity, which were a lot of desperate, individual efforts,” Chrissy Ritter said.
Next Saturday the second-ranked Panthers will play their first game of the playoffs at home, against an opponent yet to be determined.
“We are excited to have a home game because it is so nice to be able to play on our turf,” Chrissy Ritter said. “The home field advantage gives the team an advantage mentally just because of the support we feel when we are at home.”
(04/15/15 3:56pm)
The second-ranked Middlebury women’s lacrosse team once again dominated on Kohn Field Saturday April 11, against NESCAC opponent Bates. The bleachers and sidelines were packed with barely any room to stand due to the visiting alumni who were there to celebrate Head Coach Missy Foote’s farewell tour. The crowd was not disappointed while watching the Panthers trump Bates with a staggering 18-6 victory. The victory brings the Panthers to a 10-1 record, winning the last 10 straight games and pushed them to the number two in the national rankings.
Laurel Pascal ’16 started the game off strong with a quick goal to kickstart positive momentum for the team. Mary O’Connell ’17 and Katie Ritter ’15 followed soon after with two goals. Bates responded with a goal of their own, making the score 3-1. This slight comeback did not defeat the Panthers; rather, it motivated them to score five-straight goals in a 2:09 span. The team kept this up until the last 0:50 seconds of the half when Bates scored however, Hailey Cosseboom ’17 added one for the home team off an assist from Ritter. The Panthers refused to let up offensively, and made sure to finish the first half with a comfortable 12-2 lead.
The Panthers continued to apply pressure in the second half. O’Connell added two quick goals to start the second half, and the team went on a run again scoring two more goals from Ritter and Bridget Instrum ’16 putting the Panthers up 16-2. Although Bates ended up scoring four goals in the second half, the Panthers managed to hold them off and grab another victory by a final score of 18-6.
O’Connell once again dominated the game with a career- high six goals to help the Panthers to victory. Pascal also scored three goals while Ritter, Instrum and Cosseboom added two apiece. Ritter finished the game with a career-best five assists and earned a game-high five draw controls. Madeleine Kinker ’16, with the help of the Panther’s lockdown defense, made three saves in her 46 minutes of play. Kinker “has been playing so well, and has really stepped up this season and continues to impress us. Having her in the goal really eases the pressure on the defense because we know that time and time again she is there to get that difficult save,” Catherine Fowler ’15 said.
The defense this season cannot be left unnoticed. Middlebury is not only ranked number one in offense, they are also number one in goals against in the league, which is a large aspect of the Panthers’ success this season. Maggie Caputi ’16 attributed this success to “practicing different defensive variations and perfecting all the little things [as well as their] constant improvement as a defensive unit.”
The Panthers have been more determined than ever with just three games left in NESCAC conference play. The team “plans to stay focused by taking it one game at a time” and maintaining their “focus on the task at hand,” Fowler said.
“The win against Bates was much more than just a win to the team,” it was a win in front of several generations of Middlebury women’s lacrosse players, Bea Eppler ’17 said. With over 150 alumni in attendance for Missy’s farewell dinner, the Panthers “wanted to come out strong and come away with a big win to show all of [their] alumni a true Middlebury lacrosse game,” Fowler added.
That night, several of alumni celebrated Missy’s extraordinary 38 year coaching career, during which she became the third-most winning coach is all Division Three sports.
Eppler was humbled and “amazed to see how many people have been and still are affected by Missy, not only as a coach but as an individual. Listening to the alumni share their stories about Missy, many of which resonated with me and my teams, was an unforgettable experience. We are all so lucky to be a part of the legacy of Missy Foote, which will undoubtedly live on forever.”
The celebrations continued on Sunday, as the current Panthers watched some of their old teammates as well as several generations of Middlebury lacrosse players duel it out in their alumni game, in which nearly 50 players participated. Hannah Deoul ’14, a captain of the team last year, traveled all the way from Israel to watch the Panthers and celebrate Missy’s farewell tour. Deoul said that “being here this weekend for a celebration of everything Missy Foote was an absolute honor. Hearing members of her first team ever to the current Middlebury Women’s Lacrosse team speak about her constant inspiration and lasting impact on them proved to me that Missy Foote IS the real deal. Her legacy has created connections for hundreds of her players and bonded them through their experiences under her coaching.”
With such a memorable and exciting weekend the Panthers are looking to focus back in and prepare for their games this week with two road games, one on Wednesday, April 15 at Hamilton and the other at Trinity on Saturday, April 18.
(04/08/15 10:48pm)
Improving their record to 8-1, the third-ranked Middlebury women’s lacrosse team avenged last year’s pair of one-goal losses to the second-ranked Colby Mules with a satisfying 7-5 victory at Bill Alfond Field on Saturday, April 4. The Panthers struck early and often by jumping out to a 5-0 lead from which Colby struggled to recover. Laurel Pascal ’16 started the game off with a quick goal followed by a score from Katie Ritter ’15. Pascal continued Middlebury’s momentum, recording her second goal of the first half. The first half scoring was completed with goals by Chrissy Ritter ’16 and Mary O’Connell ’17. Colby was demoralized but not broken. They stormed back with three unanswered goals narrowing the Panther’s lead to 5-3 at the half.
Both teams are known for their lockdown defense, and accordingly, defensive play dominated the second half. Colby scored quickly at the start of the second half, however, Pascal responded with another goal followed by O’Connell shortly after to give the Panthers a 7-4 lead with 23:10 left in the game. The Mules early second half goal that was their last goal until the last seven seconds of play when they scored their second goal of the half.
The victory over Colby was truly a team effort. O’Connell summarized the team’s approach, stating, “Everyone on the team brings something different to the table and we don’t rely on a few people to get the job done. Every victory is a team victory. At any point in the game coach could put anyone in and that person would be a spark on attack or defense. We have one if not the deepest team in Division III and at any given moment someone different will step up and bring something new and unique to the game,” she said.
Despite the fact that this was a team victory, there were many standout individual efforts by the Panthers. Cat Fowler ’15 had four ground balls and two draw controls while Delaina Smith ’17 added four ground balls and caused one turnover in the victory. Colby managed to record more shots on goal than Middlebury, however, goaltender Madeleine Kinker ’16 proved her talent between the pipes by stopping 10 shots, including six in the second half.
The impressive victory over Colby was the product of a lot of hard work. Allie Hooley ’17 said the victory is evidence “of the team’s growth over the course of this season.” She added that she expected the team to improve even more as the season progresses.
“This win gives us more confidence in the way we play as a team, and it only adds to ourexcitement as we head into the last few games of [the] regular season.”
Hooley added that “[the team] will continue to do what [they] do best to prepare for any team: work hard in practice, prepare for our game with our opponent in mind, and most importantly work on playing our own game of Middlebury lacrosse.”
After the game O’Connell summarized how the team felt after the big win.
“It was great to beat Colby especially with two tough losses last year by one goal [...] we got our redemption this year,” she added.
The team will return to action this week, facing Union on Tuesday, April 7 at 5:30 and Bates at home this Saturday on Kohn Field.
(03/19/15 3:05am)
The Middlebury women’s lacrosse team took the field and performed well in an important conference matchup, snagging a 15-8 road win at Wesleyan on the afternoon of Saturday, March 14. The ninth-ranked Panthers got off the bus ready to play and ran away with a 6-1 lead in the first half and never looked back.
The game started with a quick unassisted goal from Katie Ritter ’15. However, Wesleyan fought back and answered with a goal of their own. This fired up the Panthers, who responded with a goal from Hollis Perticone ’18, which was the catalyst that sparked a four goal scoring streak for Middlebury. Laurel Pascal ’16, Ritter, Bridget Instrum ’16, and Alli Sciarretta ’16 scored the next four goals, making the score 6-1 with under 10 minutes left in the first half. Wesleyan did not back down and responded with three goals to notch the score at 6-4 in favor of the Panthers. Ritter and Pascal added another two tallies before the halftime whistle blew.
The Panthers kept the momentum in their favor going into the second half with another pair of goals from Ritter and Pascal. Wesleyan’s Leah Sherman ended the Panthers’ scoring streak, but Middlebury responded once again with a goal from Sciarretta followed by Pascal, Kate Hodgson ’16 and Mary O’Connell ’17 to make the score 14-5. Wesleyan went on a quick rally scoring three goals toward the end of the contest. Perticone finished the game on a high note, scoring the final goal of the game to leave the final score at 15-8.
Both Ritter and Pascal ended the game with four goals apiece. In addition, first-year team member Perticone also contributed two goals and two assists. Delania Smith ’17 and O’Connell both also contributed two assists in the victory.
Despite letting up four goals in each half, the Middlebury defense was very strong. Goalie Madeleine Kinker ’16 turned aside seven shots while allowing only five goals on the day. First-year goaltender Alex Freedman ’18 was also successful between the pipes, allowing only three goals in her time on the field.
Middlebury out-shot Wesleyan 24 to 23, although Wesleyan held the 18-14 advantage in ground balls. The Panthers also controlled 15 out of the game’s 25 draws which allowed the team to gain an important advantage on the offensive end.
Captain and season overall leading scorer Ritter stated that the win this weekend was due to the team’s “energy and focus in practice … these past few weeks. [The team] started to focus on highlighting our teammates’ strengths by vocalizing what they do well in practice” which has translated to the field.
Middlebury will have an entire week to prepare for a road game against Bowdoin next Saturday, March 21. The team is looking to focus “more [on the] little details and nuances that [the team has] to work on” in order to prepare for Bowdoin, Ritter said.
Bowdoin, ranked 5th nationally with a 4-0 record, will be a tough matchup for ninth-ranked Middlebury this weekend. However, the Panthers are going to “come out in practice this week really hard knowing that our spring break games will be great tests for us” Ritter said.
(03/11/15 1:40am)
The Middlebury women’s lacrosse team came out firing this past Saturday, March 7, to seal a 19-2 win over Connecticut College on Kohn Field. Coming off of their loss last week, the Panthers were focused and determined to respond.
“After our Tufts game we went over the film with our coaches and pinpointed a few areas that we needed to improve for our game against Conn. Our shooting percentage was not as high as we had hoped against Tufts, so that was definitely something we focused on in our practices. We also learned several new attack plays and sequences” Hollis Perticone ’18 said.
Middlebury’s high-powered offensive effort was balanced between 10 different players who all scored goals in the contest. Bridget Instrum ’16, Alli Sciaretta ’16, and Chrissy Ritter ’16 each scored three goals apiece while Perticone, Katie Ritter ’15, Bea Eppler ’17 and Delania Smith ’17 each contributed two goals to the win. In addition to her goals, Perticone had five draw controls and four caused turnovers.
Middlebury started the game trailing the Camels by one, but the Panthers fought back with an unassisted goal from Sciarretta to tie the game. From then on, Conn. had very little hope of a comeback. By the end of the first half, the Panthers were up 8-1. The squad relentlessly hit the gas on the offensive end of the field and managed to continue pumping goals past the Conn. defense.
Middlebury kept up the pressure for the remainder of the game, and the Panthers were able to score 11 more goals. Conn. College, on the other hand, managed to convert on only one more scoring opportunity on the day.
Panther goaltender Madeline Kinker ’16 recorded a pair of saves, while first-year Alex Freeman ’18 played well in her first collegiate game.
Going into the game ranked tenth nationally, the Panthers lived up to their ranking and displayed their ability and potential to dominate in the NESCAC. Saturday’s game was a good opportunity for the team to showcase its depth, as athletes from all classes rallied together to contribute to the win.
In addition to the efforts of the squad’s younger members, the team drew strength from their senior leadership. “Captains Katie Ritter and Cat Fowler ’15 did an amazing job stepping up this weekend to get us back on track after our loss to Tufts,” Kate Hodgson ’16 said.” As the only seniors on the team, they have an incredible amount of responsibility put on them and they prove time and time again that they are more than capable of leading our team.”
The Panthers look forward to keeping this momentum going in their upcoming matchup against Wesleyan on Saturday, March 14. Wesleyan sits near the bottom of the NESCAC with a record of 0-2 in conference play so far this season.
(03/05/15 12:55am)
The women’s lacrosse team hosted the Tuft Jumbos for their season opener on Kohn Field this past Saturday, Feb. 28. The Panthers entered the game ranked third in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches’ Association preseason poll, while the Jumbos ranked 14th. The Panthers fought and battled to the very last minute with several lead changes in their 12-11 loss.
Katie Ritter ’15 opened the game scoring two free position goals to give the Panthers a 2-0 lead early in the first half. However, Tuft’s Kate Mackin netted two goals to tie the game up. Laurel Pascal ’16 responded with an unassisted goal followed by a goal by Alli Sciarretta ’16 assisted by Mary O’Connell ’17 to give the Panthers a 4-2 lead. The Jumbos were not silenced, however, responding with two more unassisted goals from Lindsey Walker giving Tufts its first lead of the game. Again, Sciarretta ’16, assisted by O’Connell ’17, scored with 00:34 left in the first half sending the Panthers into the half with a 5-5 tie.
The second half was a ruthless battle. O’Connell ’17 opened the half strong with an unassisted goal. The following 15 minutes were nothing short of entertaining with two ties and two lead changes. However, the Jumbos went on a run and were up by three with 11:12 left in the game. Chrissy Ritter ’16 scored with an assist from the elder Ritter followed by a goal from rookie Hollis Perticone ’18 closing the gap to one. Tufts once again responded, giving them a two-point lead. Despite the two last minute goals by Pascal, the Panthers were unable to pull out the victory.
The loss for the Panthers came despite overall advantages in shots, ground balls and draw controls. The Tuft’s goalkeeper played a key role in the Jumbo victory, recording 10 saves to the seven of her Middlebury counterpart. However, goalie Maddie Kinker ’16, “really stepped up on Saturday making some key saves for her first collegiate start,” stated Captain Catherine Fowler ’15. With the loss, Middlebury falls to 0-1 overall in the NESCAC.
This is just the first game of the season for the Panthers, and the players are confident that they can make the necessary improvements for this Saturday’s game against Connecticut College.
“[We are] looking to have better movement and shots on offense and really limit the opponents opportunities to score on defense,” said Katie Ritter.
The Panthers have a week to improve and hopefully get a win on Saturday. The team is only looking forward from here on out and they “plan to focus this practice week on our attack and offensive plays,” said Fowler. “Initially losing the opening game was a tough one to swallow, but you learn and grow more from the losses and negatives, so I anticipate this week being very productive for our team.”