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(05/07/14 2:49pm)
Middlebury (5-24, 2-10) capped its rebuilding season this weekend by splitting a close double-header against Bowdoin on Saturday, May 3 and falling twice to a terrific Tufts squad on Sunday, May 4. Captains Alex Kelly ’14 and Dylan Kane ’14 delivered memorable final performances for an appreciative Forbes Field crowd.
To preempt the rain on Saturday, the teams squared away earlier than usual and the Panthers were the first to get the worm. In the first inning, Kelly led off with a single and Joe MacDonald ’16 drove him in with a liner to center field.
Starter Eric Truss ’15 weathered three consecutive hits in the fifth inning, allowing the tying run but then did well to escape the bases-loaded jam by forcing a foul out. In the seventh inning, a seeing-eye single would loop over the retreating second baseman and land in front of both charging outfielders, scoring a runner from second base for Bowdoin.
Ryan Rizzo ’17 knocked a two-out double in the bottom of the seventh, but Middlebury would need to wait for the second game for revenge.
Rizzo would applaud Kane’s final pitching performance in game two.
“He pitched extremely well,” Rizzo said, “getting out of multiple jams - one of which he helped himself on a sacrifice bunt, throwing out the lead runner at third. That play stuck out to me because there were many instances this year where we did not execute that defensive play, and although it seemed so small, it was a big momentum shift and a confidence boost for our team. We then ended the inning with a double play.”
The outstanding defense was complemented with a flurry of offense in the fourth inning. Jason Lock ’17, Max Araya ’16, MacDonald and Johnny Read ’17 went to work on the Bowdoin pitcher and the boys in blue exited with three runs. Jake Stalcup ’17 came in to get the save and secure the win for Kane.
“It was great to see (Kane), such a big member of our team, go out on a high note, as he got the win against a very good NESCAC opponent,” Rizzo said.
Kane finished with five innings of one-run ball, allowing just one walk and striking out three.
On Sunday, Middlebury lost by scores of 6-0 and 10-1 to a ninth-ranked Tufts team. Charlie Boardman ’17 recorded hits in both games, including a pinch-hit base knock in the first contest, and Kelly was the shining star amidst the light rain and clouds.
Kelly hit a double in fourth inning of the second game, only to be called out for allegedly missing first base on his running path. The play summed up a season of tough bounces for Middlebury, but it also showed the great leadership and attitude of Kelly. His next time up, with his teammates on their feet, he hit the ball even farther to right field and trotted out for an RBI double in his last at bat at Middlebury. Kelly went 5-14 on the weekend, including the at-bat where he was robbed of a double by missing first base.
Kelly ends his career with a .348 average.
“Alex Kelly has been an awesome leader and mentor to the younger guys on the team,” Read said. “The kid is a living legend. He has been extremely fun to play with, and his bat will be missed next year.”
Lock and Rizzo weighed in on the future for Panther baseball.
Lock pointed to the sweaty workouts and diligent drilling of the second-years, saying, “I’ve never been around a group of guys--most notably our current sophomores--who show such a tenacious work ethic on a daily basis…Even though we may not have gotten the results we wanted this season, I think that the experience and mental toughness that our young team gained this year will drive us all to respond in an extremely positive way next season.”
Rizzo seems ready to work toward next season already.
“It won’t just happen,” Rizzo said, “it will take dedication from each and every member of the team in the weight room, in summer ball, during fall practices, and next winter. We could be a great team, but it takes dedication and focus as well as the ability to seize the moment when it counts.”
Middlebury graduates just two players and returns a pitching-heavy class of rising seniors for the 2015 campaign. A strong freshman class is also expected to augment the team as it gears up for next season.
(04/30/14 2:43pm)
Middlebury is scratching its head after falling twice to Trinity on Saturday, April 26 and twice to Castleton State on Sunday, April 27. The team plated just two runs over the four-game span; its offensive woes persisting like a stubborn grass stain. On the bright side, Middlebury kept up solid pitching and defense to keep three of the games low-scoring affairs. Eric Truss ’15, Dylan Kane ’15 and Logan Mobley ’15 made competitive starts on the mound, getting quality bullpen help from Jake Stalcup ’17.
Cool rain and blustery wind created a sinister setting for Saturday’s contest on Forbes Field against the visiting Trinity College Bantams. The Bantams struck for two runs in the first inning, one being smacked home by a deep triple, and the other dribbling in on a wild pitch.
In the second inning, Trinity small-balled a leadoff single home with a sacrifice bunt, a forced balk and finally a fielding error. The fourth run came in a similarly messy fashion, with the runner walking to first base, earning second on a botched pick-off attempt, then stealing third and home at once when the throw to third base missed its target.
Imitating many Middlebury students, the Panthers procrastinated their offense until the final inning. Jason Lock ’17 roped a single through the right side and designated hitter Johnny Luke ‘16 connected with power for a double. Jason Lock ’17 would score on a ground ball hit by Garrett Werner ’16 but the rally stopped soon thereafter.
The second game was tight until Trinity screwed and glued the Middlebury coffin shut with 10 runs in the final three innings. Despite keeping it close on the defensive side, Middlebury never mounted any serious threat at the plate, striking out 10 times and earning just four hits on its 25 at bats.
Three Middlebury errors and a balk turned Trinity’s five hits into eight runs in the fifth and sixth innings. Two more runs came in the seventh to complete the day’s romp at 11-0.
Getting on the bus to Castleton offered Middlebury a chance to put Saturday’s rainy struggle behind, but the team suffered two very close road losses to a very capable Castleton St. team.
Kane pitched a complete game, allowing two runs on five hits. In the bottom of the first, Cullen Coleman ’17 helped out his pitcher with a stellar diving catch in left field, landing in the puddle that doubled as the outfield grass.
“He was soaked for the rest of the game,” Alex Kelly ’14 remarked, “the outfield was a mess.”
After four innings, Kane had allowed just one hit, but in the fifth the Spartans strung together four hits and moved ahead 2-0.
The Panthers put runners on third base in both the sixth and seventh innings but failed to put their metal bats onto the speeding leather when it would have counted.
Luke had two doubles and a single in four final inning plate appearances this weekend, fulfilling his prophetic comment last week, “The reason we haven’t been winning the one-run games is simply because we haven’t been getting clutch hitting at the right times, but that will come around.”
Unfortunately, Luke’s late-inning heroics were not enough to earn the Panthers a victory in over the weekend.
The second game was an absolute butter popcorn drama decided by a final play at home plate. Middlebury fell behind by two runs in the first, but rallied in the final inning again. With two outs, Lock on third base and Luke on second, Werner lasered a single to right field. Lock scored easily and Luke was waved home by the third base coach but the outfielder made a perfect throw just in time to catch a sliding Luke.
Kelly described the frustration level this season as “at times nearly unbearable,” but held onto some positive takeaways from the weekend.
“It’s clear to see the defense has come a really long way, which has a lot to do with the younger guys like Johnny Read ’17 and Joe MacDonald ’16 making the plays we need to make,” Kelly said, “that plus some great starts by the staff.”
Middlebury hosts Bowdoin on Saturday, May 3 and Tufts Sunday, May 4 for a pair of doubleheaders to finish the season.
(04/24/14 3:33am)
The Amherst Lord Jeffs prevailed over the Middlebury Panthers in a three-game series sweep this weekend at Forbes Field. The double-header on Friday, April 18 featured a 3-0 shutout win for Amherst and a 2-1 thriller that Amherst snatched in the tenth inning. Saturday’s contest slipped away from Middlebury and Amherst clubbed its way to an 11-3 win.
Despite the losses, Alex Kelly ’14 (6-13, two runs, RBI), Max Araya ’16 (3-8, 2 RBI, 2 BB, HBP) and Joe MacDonald ’16 (3-10, RBI) swung proficiently at the plate and hurlers Eric Truss ’15 and Cooper Byrne ’15 threw heat from the hill.
In the first game, the Panthers outhit the Lord Jeffs 9-4 but missed key opportunities to knock runners home. Middlebury was able to load the bases in the second and third innings, but undefeated Amherst slinger Dylan Driscoll wriggled out of the early trouble.
Wild pitches and throwing errors in the second and fifth inning led directly to all three runs for Amherst, but otherwise the defense was tight.
In the sixth inning, Garrett Werner ’16 bunted for a single and Matt Leach ’15 singled to right, but from that point on the offense puttered. At the end of the day, Middlebury would leave 12 runners on base but could bring none all the way around.
“We have been working on becoming a complete team,” Coach Bob Smith said. “Our defense is playing well now, and giving us a chance to win games if we can just score some runs.”
To improve the offense, Coach Smith wants smart situational hitting.
“Our emphasis this week will be on hitting, of course, and doing the basic things right like bunting people over and scoring people from third base when there are less than two outs.”
Hungry for revenge in the second game, Truss and the Panthers kept the Lord Jeffs knotted 0-0 until the fifth inning. An unfortunate bobble gave Amherst a sudden baserunner, who would eventually score on a two-out zinger down the right field line.
In the bottom of the seventh, Jason Lock ’17 legged out a leadoff double, then moved to third base on a bunt play. Lock scurried home on a wild pitch to tie the score.
The tenth-inning heroics ultimately belonged to Amherst, whose Tyler Jacobs lifted a ball over the leftfield fence for the deciding home run.
On Saturday, the weather warmed up but so did the Amherst bats, buoyed by an outgoing wind.
Taiki Kasuga of Amherst stepped up with the bases loaded and pinged a ball three-hundred and ninety feet to the centerfield fence that scored three, capping a five-run second inning.
Kelly was 4-4 at the plate for Middlebury, scoring two runs with his own legs and knocking one more home with an RBI double.
“Kelly has been awesome. He comes every day ready to play and I respect him a lot for that,” Smith said. “He puts a lot of the burden on his shoulders, and it is tough for him, but he has kept us in a lot of games.”
This Saturday, April 26, the Panthers will welcome fans to Forbes field for another double-header against Trinity College, followed by a doubleheader with Castleston St. on the road on Sunday. Middlebury also has a handful of weekday games next week, playing back-to-back doubleheaders on Tuesday, April 29 at Skidmore and Wednesday, April 30 at Plymouth St.
“We’ve made drastic improvements over the season and a lot of our more recent games could have gone either way with more timely hitting,” Byrne said. “I think we have many reasons to be confident going into next season if we can take some games over these next two weeks against good teams and prove to ourselves that we can do much better going forward.”
(03/05/14 11:37pm)
A pain as heavy as a half-dozen hockey players followed Middlebury’s season-ending 6-3 loss to Bowdoin on Saturday, March 1. The Panthers saw an early lead slip away before the game became out-of-reach late.
Louis Belisle ’14 led the Panthers on offense, scoring two trademark power-play goals, fellow seniors Robbie Donahoe ’14, John Barr ’14, Michael Longo ’14, Ben Wiggins ’14, Nick BonDurant ’14 and Thomas Freyre ’14 all skated in their final game for the Panthers.
Playing in front of a packed house, the Panthers came out fast and loose from the puck drop. Youngster Mike Najjar ’17 lofted a creative pass over some Bowdoin defenders for a good chance, and minutes later Robbie Dobrowski ’15 freed up Longo on a break with a no-look dish in the neutral zone. Eventually, Derek Pimentel ’15 forced a Bowdoin hooking penalty and the power-play unit cashed in for the first goal. The quick release of Belisle beat the Bowdoin goalie on the blocker side, the puck snatching just an inch of his jersey on its way through.
The lead would be short-lived, as two minutes later Bowdoin intercepted a breakout of the Middlebury zone and unluckily the defender who dove to break up the shot tipped the opportune attacker’s shot perfectly under the cross bar. As Middlebury took the goal, Bowdoin quickly gained a power-play and one minute later surprised Panther goalie Liam Moorfield-Yee ’16 with a wraparound goal from behind the net.
Middlebury went into the second period with an extended six-on-four advantage, and did not disappoint. Belisle threaded a wrister through a quarrelsome traffic jam and past a hopeless Bowdoin goalie to even the score.
Once more, Bowdoin responded immediately. For Moorfield-Yee, the width of his stick handle was enough to parry away the first point blank shot on goal, but Bowdoin’s fore-checking pressure forced another costly turnover that led directly to a go-ahead-goal for Bowdoin just four minutes into the period.
Middlebury called a timeout to rally its skaters, but the team would fail to muster even a single shot on goal for the remainder of the period while surrendering a pair of goals. Two well-struck Polar Bear slapshots from the top of the zone would find open twine and vault Bowdoin ahead 5-2 going into the third period.
While the Panthers showed renewed energy in the third period, it was too little too late. Longo and Jake Charles ’16 delivered some strong body-checks and Barr worked hard on the offensive boards to open up chances for his teammates. Eventually, George Ordway ’15 would come steaming across the blue line and snap off a bullet that brought Middlebury within two.
As time wore down, Bowdoin battened down the hatches and the Panthers had trouble setting up sustained pressure in the offensive zone. With seven minutes left, a power-play opportunity arose for the Panthers, but Bowdoin snatched an unexpected two-on-one rush. As the Bowdoin players criss-crossed in front of BonDurant, the puck jarred loose, but one player with his back to the net found it again and whirled it past Bondurant to seal the game.
“It was a disappointing way to go out, for sure,” Freyre said. “Having played the way we did the past two weekends, this wasn’t what we were expecting...In the third period...we were thinking, ‘This will be our last period unless we do something here.’”
The Panthers finish the season with an 11-11-3 record, the first time since 1989 that they have failed to finish above .500. The team battled through doubts and adversity all season long, and then saw their schedule cut short as things appeared to be moving in a positive direction.
“This team had a lot of potential,” Donahoe said. “But in the end it was just potential most of the time. There were some times when we played great: versus Norwich, in the third period versus Hamilton and last weekend too.”
With an 8-4-1 record at home, the 2013-14 team gave the Kenyon crazies plenty to cheer about. While the leadership, camaraderie and on-ice services of the seniors will be missed next year, the core of returning players certainly possesses enough scrap and skill to let the goal horns roar in Kenyon next season.
“There is a lot of talent on this team still,” Donahoe said. “But, they have got to find a vehicle to realize that potential more consistently.”
(02/26/14 9:18pm)
Middlebury (11-10-3) won big this weekend over Amherst and Hamilton to earn home ice advantage for the NESCAC quarterfinals, which will take place versus Bowdoin in Kenyon Arena this Saturday, March 1. Robbie Dobrowski ’15 fired in the late game winner to dispose of Amherst, and the seniors contributed five goals against Hamilton in their final regular season game. In the last ten years, only one other Middlebury player has scored as many goals in a season as Louis Belisle ’14 has this season. The captain has tallied 17 scores this year and garnered NESCAC Player of the Week honors for his achievements over the weekend.
The contest on the night of Saturday, Feb. 22 entertained the eight hundred fans in attendance as much as any of the weekend Carnival events. Belisle scored first on a second-period power play, gliding into his familiar position on the left point and punching a wrist shot into the twine behind Amherst goalie Dave Cunningham. Middlebury worked its way to a 2-0 lead when Ronald Fishman ’16 buried an outside shot on another power play.
There were several juicy rebound chances that seriously tested Cunningham, but he battled to keep his team in reach. Sure enough, the Lord Jeffs would find a turnover in the Middlebury zone and move within one goal just past the game’s halfway point.
One minute into the third period, Liam Moorfield-Yee ’16 kicked out an initial save, but a fortunate Amherst forward evened the score at two.
It felt like a matter of time before Middlebury, who recorded nearly double the shots on goal as Amherst, would jump ahead again. When it did, Dobrowski did so in rousing fashion. John Barr ’14 charged hard out of the zone on the breakout and linked up with Belisle in the neutral zone. As he crossed the offensive blue line, Belisle slid the puck over to Dobrowski. The Amherst defender poked and stiffened to block the shot, but Dobrowski curled the puck tight to his back leg and squeezed off a rising shot that split the defender’s legs and whizzed past the goalie’s ear before he could react. Dobrowski was overdue for his first goal of the season, but he could not have chosen a better time to score it.
“Honestly I just tried to put it on net,” Dobrowski said, “but it was a great feeling to get the lead. There’s nothing better than beating Amherst.”
Middlebury still needed to win against Hamilton on Sunday, Feb. 23 to gain a home playoff game, and the senior class stepped up to make sure of it. Surprisingly, despite going ahead on a nifty backhand goal from Thomas Freyre ’14, the already eliminated Hamilton Continentals battled back for two consecutive goals that put Middlebury uncomforably behind. Head Coach Bill Beaney called a timeout and shared some fervent words with the team.
Toward the end of the second period, emotions were running high and both teams began playing with some real bite. Michael Longo ’14, the physical leader of the Panthers, caused mayhem in the offensive corners and created his own chances in the dangerous area right on top of the goalies crease.
After every whistle gloves were thrust up into facemasks and players looked for any chance to inflict harm during the run of play. Jake Charles ’16 bowled over an off-balance Hamilton center shortly after an offensive zone faceoff and headed to the box for interference.
In the third period, Belisle looked to the sky in celebration after fluttering in a change-up shot from the blue line that fell above a screened goalie. With about eight minutes left in the game, Belisle would score again, assisted by Ben Wiggins ’14, to put Middlebury in front.
Hamilton went on the power play and threatened to tie the game once more, but Moorfield-Yee made a bogglingly quick snatch with the left hand and the arena sighed in collective relief.
After Hamilton committed two penalties off their own, Barr came charging through its zone, clapping a low shot of the goalie’s pads and clinically finishing on his own rebound. Longo would put a satisfying cap on senior night and the finally fruitful season by sliding the fifth goal into Hamilton’s empty net.
“This weekend we played like we were fighting for something. It is nice to see us finally coming together,” Dobrowski said. “We hope that it will translate into more good games in the playoffs.”
The upcoming matchup against Bowdoin this Saturday promises to be a real barnburner. Both of the Panthers’ games against Bowdoin this season have gone into overtime, with thirteen goals being scored between the two teams. Bowdoin is 4-4 since beating Middlebury on Friday, Jan. 24, and the Panthers are now riding a three-game win streak into the matchup.
This year’s team has played significantly better at home than on the road, so Middlebury fans should not underestimate the impact of a well-versed cheer to move the Panthers into the NESCAC semifinal.
(02/19/14 3:49pm)
Men’s hockey captain Louis Belisle ’14 delivered a game-winner with forty seconds remaining in the overtime period against Williams on Saturday, Feb. 15 to win by a score of 2-1. Middlebury also played Williams to a 1-1 tie at the Ephs home rink on Friday, Feb. 14, with Liam Moorfield-Yee ’16 squeezing tight between the pipes with a .957 save percentage over the two-game series.
At Williams on Friday, George Ordway ’15 finally broke the ice about one minute into the third period, snatching up a giveaway in the Williams zone and spinning in a wraparound goal for his fourth of the season.
“When I think of players who do all the right things, but don’t always get the credit on the score sheet, Ordway definitely comes to mind,” said Assistant Coach Jamie McKenna.
Williams mustered a response two minutes later on a man-advantage. Moorfield-Yee slid across the crease neatly to save a one-time slap-shot, but the rebound spilled right to well-positioned Eph and the score was tied.
Mason Graddock ’09, an assistant coach with the Middlebury team, developed a reputation for defensive toughness as a player here and now trains the four-man units that kill off penalties. This means scouting the other team’s power-play beforehand and matching up against their strength. Despite surrendering the late power-play goal, he stood by the system which has held opponents to scoreless on eighty-eight percent of the two-minute opportunities.
“Friday’s goal was not a defensive breakdown. They got a good bounce and that will happen once in a while,” he said. “I am pleased with how we’ve been killing off penalties this year.”
At Middlebury on Saturday, Williams scored eight minutes into the first period, again on a power-play. The Ephs’ Paul Steinig collected a pass just below the right wing faceoff circle and slung one just inside the far post.
After the first goal, Middlebury took a death grip on puck possession and began barraging the Williams goaltender with shots from all directions. By the end of the game, the Panthers held a 44-23 shots advantage.
Derek Pimentel ’15 finally scored on a six-on-four advantage when Jake Charles ’16 surprised everyone but Pimentel with an extra pass across the goalmouth to complete a brilliant tic-tac-toe scoring strike.
Right when it looked like the game was headed for another tie, Belisle took a breakout pass from John Barr ’14 in the defensive zone and wove down the ice. Cutting laterally at the blue line, Belisle zipped a wrist-shot across his body and the puck found the top right corner.
“It felt so good to score that one,” Belisle said. “It was such an important game to win. The game was ours to take. I think the shot count really tells the story.”
With a strong turnout from the fans this weekend, the Panthers hope that they can continue this train of success.
“We have a new game plan where we play tougher in front of both nets and play harder to play against,” Belisle said. “As much as we know the challenge of some of our opponents, we know that our biggest opponent is ourselves.”
Graddock was pleased with the teams play, especially on Saturday night.
“You could attribute some of it to the bigger rink, but more so I think we were hungry to get a win,” he said. “We’ve had a number of games that did not go our way recently, so we didn’t want to let that happen again.”
Middlebury sits in a tightly packed NESCAC race with two games remaining. Two wins or two losses could land Middlebury anywhere between third and ninth place when the dust finally settles. That means there is still a chance to win home-ice advantage in the first round of the NESCAC playoffs, a favorable situation given the teams impressive 6-3-1 record at home, outscoring conference opponents 23-12 in those games.
“Our fans are loud,” Belisle said, “It feels really good to have that support and it makes a big difference. It would be really special to get a playoff game at home.”
The Panthers return to the ice this Saturday, Feb. 22, with a home matchup against second-place Amherst. Middlebury will then wrap up its regular season by hosting Hamilton on Sunday, Feb. 23.
(02/12/14 7:04pm)
It is gut check time for the Middlebury men’s hockey team (8-10-2) who will face four must-win games in the coming two weekends to salvage a season that never quite lifted off the ground. In the past three weekends, Middlebury lost to Bowdoin, then beat Colby and Tufts before losing three straight to Connecticut College, Trinity and Wesleyan. Despite the chilling results, the faithful can point to Middlebury’s continued success in the shots category and recent stellar play from important leaders John Barr ’14 and Ben Wiggins ’14. Wiggins earned NESCAC Player of the Week honors for his three goal, two assist weekend against Bowdoin and Colby.
The NCAA championship banners hanging proudly in the Kenyon arena rafters put significant pressure on every edition of the Middlebury hockey team. This year, after losing seven of the past ten games, the team adopts an unfamiliar underdog mentality that may just become the missing puzzle piece to the team’s inconsistent play.
Thomas Freyre ’14 called the last two weeks “embarassing” and candidly expressed the need for a “dramatic change across the board from seniors to freshmen” in order to compete in the postseason.
“We need to play like underdogs,” Freyre said. “No team we play now is going to respect us, so we need to earn it.”
The Panthers were seconds away from a signature win on the road against Bowdoin Jan. 25, but the Polar Bears prevailed in overtime. Goals from Wiggins, Ronald Fishman ’16 and George Ordway ’15 erased a Bowdoin lead. With two minutes left, Louis Belisle ’14 gave Middlebury its first lead with a top shelf wrister on a five-on-three power play. Two inexcusable penalties from the Panthers let Bowdoin pull the goalie and bully in a rebound goal on their six-on-three player advantage. The home team slid in an overtime goal to send Middlebury packing.
At several points this season, team defense has tightened and the power play has excelled to lift the Panthers easily above quality opponents. Yet uncertainty at the goaltender position and lapses in the unique system still stifle the squad like a wet blanket.
Middlebury took out its anger on Colby on Saturday, Jan. 25 and Tufts on Friday, Jan. 31. Freyre assisted a tip-in goal from Matt Silcoff ’16, then stationed in front for a tip-in goal of his own to move a critical distance in front of the Mules. Derek Pimentel ’15, who assisted the Freyre goal, scored one of his own, and two Wiggins goals completed the scoring.
The offense kept churning against Tufts. Skating on the open ice of a four-on-four situation in the second period, Barr rattled home a shot off the post and a minute later Belisle finished one of his own. Pimentel scored two goals in the third period, his ninth and tenth on the season.
In most respects, Middlebury deserved another victory against Conn. College The Panthers outshot the Camels 34 to 15. Mike Petchonka of Conn. College put on a show to limit Middlebury to just one goal, and Liam Moorfield-Yee ’16 surrendered two on 15 shots to concede the game.
Against Trinity and Wesleyan, Middlebury dropped into two-goal deficits in the first period that proved insurmountable.
“Bad starts have been killing us all season,” Freyre said, “We respond to the other team when we really should be dictating the game ourselves.”
Middlebury traveled to Hartford, CT to meet the eleventh-ranked Trinity Bantams on Feb. 8. The Panthers trailed 2-0 in the second period when Evan Neugold ’16 brought Middlebury within one. Twenty-seven seconds later, Trinity again stretched their lead to two goals, and by the end of the second period the Bantams led 4-1.
Barr netted one for Middlebury early in the fourth, and with 13:28 remaining in the game Fishman made it a one-goal contest. The Bantams then sealed the deal with a fifth goal a minute later en route to the 5-3 victory.
Middlebury surrendered two goals twenty-one seconds apart in the first period at Wesleyan on Feb. 9. Thirty shots from the Panthers yielded only one late goal from Jake Charles ’16 on an assist from Freyre.
Despite the recent skid, it is unfair to judge this team on wins and losses alone. If the team can use its adversity to motivate a positive run, Middlebury may just get hot at the right time and sneak another banner for the Kenyon rafter collection. Two back-to-back games against third-ranked Williams (9-3-2 NESCAC) make the road a difficult one for Middlebury, but Middlebury is confident it can defeat the Ephs and gain all the more momentum because of it.
(01/23/14 6:26am)
Ten games remain for the mystifying Middlebury men’s hockey team (6-6-2), who fell short this weekend against two strong out-of-conference opponents, fourth-ranked Plattsburgh (14-1-2) and fifth-ranked Norwich (12-3-2). Seventeen hundred fans came out on Friday night and juiced up Kenyon arena — an energy that the players matched with superb quality of play.
Borrowing words from the Middlebury fight song, Friday night’s contest against Plattsburgh certainly qualified as a “hot time in the old town” despite the final score. Plenty of shoving, jersey grabbing, and devious slaps to the legs filled up the time between whistles for the two well-acquainted teams.
“I love playing in those kinds of [physical] games,” Thomas Freyre ’14 said. “We are so grateful to our fans, from the town and the college, for coming out and supporting us.”
Plattsburgh started hot in their Soviet red jerseys and tested Nick BonDurant ’14 with the first six shots of the night. John Barr ’14 nearly scored on Middlebury’s first shot and then hustled to break up a quick 2-on-1 for Plattsburgh with a brilliant dive. After 18 minutes of play, Middlebury finally ceded a goal and would therein play catch-up.
Sixteen seconds into the second period, a Plattsburgh Cardinal sped down the right wing and laid it softly into the net-charging path of his two line mates who knocked over the net and the puck crossed for the second goal of the game.
Derek Pimentel ’15 converted a rebound opportunity two minutes later off a low blast from Brendan McGovern ’16 and the souvenir white pom-poms danced visibly around the arena. Then, two sudden penalties and an unsportsmanlike conduct for Plattsburgh gave Middlebury a long 5-on-3 power play but Plattsburgh’s goaltender, Mathieu Cadieux, shut down several great scoring opportunities to preserve the visitors’ 2-1 lead.
In the third period, the Cardinals knocked in a third goal on a power play, but gritty corner work by Barr set up Louis Belisle ’14 to zip a snap shot under the goalies arm just one minute later to draw within one. The clock wound down with no regard for Middlebury’s comeback effort, and with a minute left the aggressive final push of the Panthers opened up a breakaway for Plattsburgh and the game ended 4-2.
The feisty contest versus Plattsburgh taxed on the Panthers, who dragged in their 5-2 loss to Norwich.
“BonDurant was the only reason we were only down 2-0 after the first period,” Freyre said.
Midway through the game, Evan Neugold ’16 created a terrific chance to tighten the score, but instead Norwich deflected the blow and scored seconds later to plunge Middlebury in a 3-0 hole. Late in the third period, trailing 5-0, Zach Haggerty ’17 and Belisle each found the back of the net to make the scoreboard more respectable.
Last season, Middlebury won seven of its last 10 games, scoring 46 goals and allowing just 20 over that stretch. If the Panthers can replicate their late-season success from a season ago, they could make a run into the postseason.
“I think we will finish strong, even stronger than last year,” Ben Wiggins ’14 said. “The rest of the games are all [in conference], so people are really focused in.
For such a run to materialize, however the Panthers will need to improve in key areas.
“First, we need to make the most of our chances, which means being grittier in front of net and being hungry to score goals,” Wiggins said. “Second, we need to play good team defense and lastly, we need to have good goaltending.”
While BonDurant allowed nine goals in the past two games, his defenseman Wiggins has faith in the senior netminder.
“BonDurant stood on his head against Norwich, played really solid against Plattsburgh and shut out Wesleyan last weekend so we are really confident in him,” Wiggins said.
Home ice advantage in the NESCAC tournament remains in reach for Middlebury (4-3-1 in NESCAC), but only if the team can regain their winning ways. The Panthers head north to prove their mettle on the road against Bowdoin on Friday, Jan. 24, and Colby on Saturday, Jan. 25.
(01/16/14 3:45am)
The Middlebury men’s hockey team glided past the midway point of their season at 6-4-2 (4-3-1 in NESCAC). December closed with two disappointing NESCAC losses to Amherst and Hamilton, but 2014 began with two victories over St. Michaels and Neumann, as Middlebury seized the Holiday Classic tournament on home ice. The Panthers stomached a frustrating loss to Trinity on Friday, Jan. 10, but rallied behind Nick BonDurant ’14 to shut out Wesleyan the next night as Bill Beaney eclipsed his 500th career win in front of alumni from the championship-winning ’04 team who returned to cheer on the current squad.
In 27 seasons as Middlebury’s head coach, Beaney has a 501-165-47 record. To put this achievement in perspective, only ten NHL coaches (who coach 82 game seasons) have more career wins.
“I really owe it to the tremendous players, assistant coaches, and trainers I have worked with,” Beaney said. “I think back to all of the friends I have made along the way.”
Almost every former player from the ’04 team returned this weekend to skate with and playfully roughhouse some of the current Panthers. Beaney described the scene like a proud parent.
“They are all so successful now, and it was great to see them interact with all the current guys and pick up right where they left off,” he said.
Assistant coach Jamie McKenna ’09, who contributed to wins on both sides of the bench, was impressed by the turnout of the championship team.
“I think it’s a clear testament to the kind of coaching job Beaney does,” McKenna said. “He cares about helping players grow as players and also as people.”
McKenna operates as the team power-play guru and has coached the man-advantage to a NESCAC-best 20 goals this season on 70 penalty opportunities. Shooter Louis Belisle ’14 has six strikes, coming mostly from one-time slappers or strong wrist shots from the perimeter. Against Neumann in the Holiday classic final, Belisle dragged and cranked in the game winner after passing from first-year players Andrew Neary ’17 and Mike Najjar ’17 opened up the shooting lane. Derek Pimentel ’15, Michael Longo ’14 and Cameron Romoff ’17 are also familiar forces on the man advantage, with two goals each.
“There is still more we can be doing,” McKenna said. “Some of the goals we’ve scored on the power play haven’t been great goals, but guys are working at it. I think the players realize that when we convert on the power play, we win games.”
The 20 goals account for half of the team’s total scoring on the season.
In the regular run of play, Middlebury can speed away with its legs and crisp passing, but just as quickly lapse and give away sudden heart-snatching goals. The up-and-down results this season reflect these consistency troubles, but the players and coaches continue to express confidence in the talent and tools of the group.
Longo asserted the importance of preparation, citing the two most recent games as evidence.
“They show that on any given night, we can skate with any team in the country,” Longo said. “But if we don’t come prepared, we canalso lose to anybody. It’s really in our hands. Against Wesleyan, we committed to playing better team defense and didn’t give up the type of odd man rushes that killed us against Trinity.”
Beaney drew from his vast experience coaching the team sport to articulate his own concerns.
“This team can skate as well as any that I have coached,” Beaney said. “What we need to develop are some of the intangibles. There is a certain depth of awareness, a love for the journey that separates the truly great teams. If we can find that, I believe we can do anything.”
The recent stretch of four games has given reasons to be optimistic on both ends of the rink. Through four games in 2014 Middlebury has averaged 4.25 goals per game, as opposed to just 1.5 goals per game in the four preceding contests. The return of second-year scorer Jake Charles ’16, who has five goals, and key defenseman Terrance Goguen ‘16 can only help the fortify this trend.
With his 25-save shutout victory over Wesleyan, BonDurant stuck a foot in the revolving door at the goaltender position. Liam Moorfield-Yee ’16, Drew Michals ’17, and Michael Peters ’15 have all made starts this year, but the team would like to see BonDurant keep the rubber-stopping duty with more stellar play.
This weekend Middlebury will measure up against third-ranked Plattsburgh State, who defeated the Panthers earlier this year, at Kenyon arena on Friday, Jan. 17, before traveling to face fifth-ranked Norwich the next night.
(12/04/13 8:50pm)
The Middlebury men’s hockey team kept its legs churning over Thanksgiving break, moving past Norwich in a shootout on Friday, Nov. 29 to reach the finals of the 2013 PrimeLink tournament on Saturday, Nov. 30 before falling to unbeaten Plattsburgh. The team now stands at 3-1-2 on the season, having added two narrow wins on the road at Tufts on Friday, Nov. 22 and Connecticut College on Saturday, Nov. 23.
Michael Longo ’14 stayed positive after the PrimeLink final loss to Plattsburgh.
“We started a little slow and they got three quick goals on us,” Longo said. “But, for most of the game we played right there with them and [Louis Belisle ’14] scored an incredible goal.”
Eleven minutes into the third period, with Middlebury three goals down after just six minutes in the first period, Belisle carried the puck through the slot, windmilled around two defenders to his left and snapped the puck up into the top shelf. Goalie Nicholas BonDurant ’14, who shut Plattsburgh down for the final two periods, recognized the opposing goaltender and MVP of the tournament.
“That was the only kind of shot that was going to beat their goalie, he played an amazing game,” Bondurant said.
After the finals loss to Plattsburgh, Coach Bill Beaney told Channel 3 reporters, “Our execution wasn’t what I had hoped it would be, but part of that was just that I think Plattsburgh played well.”
The Panthers went to a shootout against Norwich on Friday after finishing regulation play tied at one goal apiece. In the second period, Evan Neugold ’16 corralled a high shot toward the crease and bullied his defender while Longo found the loose puck for the goal. Norwich tied the game eight minutes later when a Norwich forward lurking well wide of the far post deflected a low shot behind his back and across the line.
Last year, the Cadets ousted Middlebury from the Primelink tournament by scoring three goals in the final 10 minutes to win 5-4.
“That was our motivation throughout the game,” Belisle said. “We got together after the third period and said ‘We’re not giving the Cadets another chance. We’re taking this one. This is our game, this is our year.’”
The Panthers earned the first goal in the game in the second period after Longo struck home a rebound in the crease. Norwich tied the game up on the power play with 3:47 left in the second period. William Pelletier converted on a pass from Corey Hale, sneaking the puck just past Michael Peters ’15 inside the left post.
In the shootout against Norwich, Jake Charles ’16, who already has four goals on the season, drew a circle around the puck, ducked a shoulder, and a quick forehand shot wedged tightly into the top right corner for the first goal. The left-handed Belisle went forehand-backhand-forehand to open up space below the blocker arm for the second. Middlebury keeper Peters was perfect on his end, denying both Norwich shooters and shaking his head wildly after taking the win.
Peters showed confidence in his teammates under the bulbs of the Channel 3 news cameras.
“This is a team where our mantra has been ‘Let’s go out and play some hockey’ and we believe that if we play the best hockey we can, we can skate with anyone in this league,” Peters said.
Middlebury showed its dominance within the NESCAC the previous weekend, beating Tufts and Connecticut College to become 3-0-1 in conference play.
Nine total penalties hurt the Tufts team, as Captain Robbie Donahoe ’14 and Derek Pimentel ’15 both cashed in goals on two-man advantages. At even strength, first-year to watch Mike Najjar ’17 tallied his first of the season, and Neugold scored another. Tufts tested Middlebury’s nerves in the third period, cutting the margin to 4-3, but the Panthers held on for the win.
At Connecticut College, the Panthers took down the camels in an overtime 5-4 thriller.
Middlebury carried a 3-2 advantage after the first period and clung to a 4-3 edge heading into the second intermission. With 50.6 seconds left in regulation, Greg Liautaud connected with JC Cangelosi near the left circle to put away the 4-4 equalizer.
With one minute to go overtime, Donahoe played a feed from the blue line and Charles was able to find the open net for the game-winner and his second goal on the day.
Middlebury pummeled the net with thirty-eight shots and gave up only fifteen, deserving every bit of the hard-fought victory.
The Panthers visit Amherst on Friday, Dec. 6 to battle for supremacy in the NESCAC and will face Hamilton away on Saturday, Dec. 7.
(11/20/13 6:51pm)
Down by a score of 3-1 with under a minute to play in the NCAA Regional final against Skidmore on Sunday, Nov. 17, Anna Kenyon ’16 jabbed in a goal and hope sprung into the throats of every Middlebury supporter in the three-hundred person crowd. Thirty seconds remained now and the Panthers charged forward as one, harassing for the ball and flinging it toward the cage. The ball knocked into a retreating defender less than five yards away before time expired, awarding Middlebury one final corner play to send the elimination game into overtime.
Off the stick of Catherine Fowler ’15, NESCAC Player of the Year and exactly the clutch shooter for the moment, the ball threaded through traffic but missed outside the right post by just a pair of inches.
So, Middlebury completed its tremendous season 16−3, NESCAC champions and just one win away from contending among the NCAA Final Four.
“I am so proud of our team,” captain Ellie O’Brien ’14 said. “From the first day we made it clear that everyone would contribute, and we had so more much fun and more success because of that.”
The final nail-gnawing minutes of the Skidmore game bore zero resemblance to the Panthers’ high-flying first half against Utica on Saturday, Nov. 16 in which the team scored five goals in the first 11 minutes of play.
Bridget Instrum ’16 powered by a defender on her backhand and cut across the goalmouth for the first tally. Minutes later, Katie Theiss ’14 slid a behind the back pass to Fowler who slapped it right to the guiding stick of Kenyon. Instrum then scored another unassisted beauty, this time coming off a strong hit from atop the offensive arc. Kenyon grabbed her second goal too, lunging headfirst into the net to chase down a wide shot. Finally, Theiss attracted a cluster of defenders before dishing down to Alyssa DiMaio ’15 for goal number five.
In the second half, young Panthers Bea Eppler ’17, Olivia Jurkowitz ’17 and Lily Taub ’17 entered the action with encouraging effectiveness. Fowler scored on a textbook give-and-go with O’Brien, Instrum tallied her third goal of the day, and Pam Schulman ’17 finished a loose ball to round out the 8-0 drubbing.
Utica came close to scoring on a penalty stroke, but Goalie Emily Knapp ’15 extended her thin stick in catlike fashion to block the point blank shot.
Another charming national anthem sung by players Mary Claire Ecclesine ’15 and Cassie Coash ’15 introduced Sunday’s affair against Skidmore, and the Panthers brimmed with a champion’s confidence.
Red hot Instrum made the score 1-0 for Middlebury just two minutes into the game, speeding a one-timer inside the near post off a well-practiced backhand pass from Fowler. Unlike Utica a day earlier, the Thoroughbreds splashed awake within three minutes and bounced in the equalizer off a waist-high stick in front.
For 12 minutes the teams jostled back and forth underneath drizzly gray clouds. Fowler drilled the post on a long hit, and Kenyon lifted one from in close that nearly passed over the stacked pads of the Skidmore goalie. Middlebury then conceded a corner penalty and a low turf-burning shot from
Skidmore at the top of the arc skittered in for the go-ahead goal.
The Middlebury faithful perked up several times before halftime, seeing a chip from Instrum soar just wide and later a strong wrister from Kenyon strike the foamy blocker of the Skidmore goalie just before the break.
In the second half, pressure mounted on the Panthers who attacked persistently but failed to unknot Skidmore’s tight defense. After earning four consecutive corners, Middlebury conceded one and Skidmore scuffed a rebound past Knapp, who was knocked over backward by a Skidmore player on the play.
The clock wound down but the ever-cheerful Middlebury bench urged with all its might.
“There was such a vibe, such a wave of energy pushing us forward,” DiMaio said. “The way we came from behind again just shows what amazing character this team has.”
Coach Katharine DeLorenzo subbed out Knapp to add speedy attacker Lauren Berestecky ’17 with six minutes still remaining on the clock, showing her faith in Meredith Rowe ’14 and the Panther defense to deny any more shots.
The heroic final surge of the season, with a clutch goal from Kenyon and the team earning one last corner, whipped the spectating crowd into a mix of elation and unbearable nerves. When the shot that seemed destined for goal missed by so little, sticks, gloves and troweled-out hearts dropped to the turf while the Middlebury fans wilted with empathy.
Captain Deidre Miller ’14 reflected on the wild finish.
“Everyone pulled together and played flawlessly for that final minute, given the situation. It was really cool to actually come back and have that last chance,” she said.
Every sport involving balls also involves their bounces, and in the end Middlebury wound up just one bounce short of continuing its NCAA run on Sunday. The team will miss the talent and leadership of seniors O’Brien, Rowe, Theiss, Hannah Deoul ’14, Miller and Hanna Kahn ’14 next season. The intangible quality that defined the 2013 team was its ability lean on its bench and enjoy the game at its most demanding moments. Should the returning players preserve this unique competitive spirit, their top-quality talent will make next year’s team another one worth watching for every thrilling moment.
(11/20/13 6:46pm)
Middlebury rang in the 2013-2014 season with two impressive performances in front of a home crowd, tying Bowdoin by a score of 2-2 on Saturday, Nov. 16 and shaming Colby by a score of 7-1 on Sunday, Nov. 17. Derek Pimentel ’15 and Connor Frick ’16 buried the key goals in the first contest, and 12 different players combined for points on Sunday.
Assistant coach Jamie McKenna praised the hustle the team demonstrated right from the opening faceoff and credited the offensive success to the quick learning curve of the younger players.
“We are definitely faster now than we were last year — we outskated both teams this weekend and moved the puck very well,” McKenna said. “We had a lot of young guys last year and now they know our system better. I think that was really on display in both games.”
On Saturday, Bowdoin struck first on a 3-on-1 rush that formed suddenly on a blocked Middlebury shot from the point. The Bowdoin winger rushed up the left wing and zipped a low shot off the pad of Middlebury goalie Mike Peters ’15 before a teammate capitalized on the rebound opportunity.
The lead held through the first intermission, but with two minutes gone in the second period Pimentel sounded the familiar goal horn for Middlebury’s first of the season. Matt Greenwald ’16 earned the assist with a quick pass off the side boards.
After killing off two Bowdoin power plays in the second period, Middlebury earned an advantage of their own and Frick electrified the 1500 fans packed into Kenyon arena. Breaking to his left past a defender at the blue line, Frick changed hands at the last moment and found space high on the right side of the net for the goal.
Midway through the third period, a rash of four penalties within two minutes opened up the ice for a 3-on-3 situation that lasted 19 seconds.
“I’ve never seen that in all my time here,” McKenna said. “But we were told to expect a lot more calls this year, so we need to be good on the power play and killing off penalties.”
Middlebury survived the odd-man situation but with only seven minutes left in the game, the Polar Bears stymied a Panther breakout and Bowdoin’s
John McGinnis deked to open up the legs of Peters and slide in a five-hole goal.
The Panthers urgently doubled the pressure and controlled the rest of the game, but a determined Bowdoin goaltender repeatedly denied the golden chances coming from the sticks of last year’s top scorers Louis Belisle ’14 and Matt Silcoff ’16.
“I felt good about the way we played,” said forward Ben Wiggins ’14. “Some of us were disappointed because there were really good opportunities to end that game, but that really just made us more hungry to get back out and win against Colby.”
Middlebury came out sticks ready on Sunday versus Colby, outshooting the Mules 41 shots to just 13. The offense cycled hard in the corners and worked the puck out to the perimeter for dangerous low shots into traffic. Many times it seemed like the Panthers held a power play advantage, positioning three shooters in a flexible umbrella atop the zone and patiently creating quality chances.
Pimentel delivered twice in the first nine minutes of the game, stuffing one rebound on the right post and nimbly lifting another into the net above a sprawling goaltender.
Peters held tight at his end to keep Colby at bay. During one sequence, Peters stretched out the right pad, then used the blocker athletically on a high rebound shot to kill off a Colby power play near the end of the first period.
The Panthers found a rhythm on the man advantage, scoring three power play goals on the night. With a 5-on-3 advantage just expiring, Evan Neugold ’16 drifted backwards to the left faceoff circle and clapped a one-timer off a pass from Ronald Fishman ’16 into the top corner. Jake Charles ’16 then joined on a rush behind Pimentel and sang a hard snapshot off the inside left post for his first Middlebury goal. On the power play again, Robbie Donahoe ’14 slapped a hard pass down low to Wiggins, who one-timed a second pass to Belisle for a bang-bang goal.
In the third period, Charles added another goal to his resume on a tipped shot from the point, and Mike Longo ’14 bore down toward the net on a three-on-one opportunity, flexing a lightning snapper over the goalie’s glove.
Just like his coach, Wiggins expressed contentment with the pace Middlebury brought.
“It was a great start,” he said. “Our pace of play really impressed me, especially for just the first two games of the season. We moved the puck and stayed focused well, so that all points in positive direction for the season.”
The Panthers hit the road next weekend, looking to carry on their fast-paced game and scoring success against Tufts on Saturday, Nov. 22 and Conn. College on Sunday, Nov. 23.
(11/14/13 2:10am)
Middlebury triumphed over Bowdoin on Sunday, Nov. 10 by a final score of 5-4 to win the NESCAC final in dramatic double-come-from-behind fashion. Bridget Instrum ’16 scored all four regulation-time goals and Alyssa DiMaio ’15 landed the title-winning punch in overtime. The Panthers knocked off Amherst a day earlier by way of one decisive goal from Pam Shulman ’17 to reach the title game. Middlebury will host the Regional round of the NCAA tournament this weekend, needing just two wins to secure a trip to the Final Four.
Amherst rode a 13-game win streak into the semifinal game on its unique home turf, but Hana Kahn ’14 and the team were confident nonetheless.
“We knew that we were meant to win that game—and we had the capability to do so if we played up to our ability,” Kahn said.
Pam Shulman ’17 shoveled home the game-winner with just 11 minutes remaining on an elevated pass from Catherine Fowler ’15 that found her crashing on the doorstep. On the defensive end, Meredith Rowe ’14 performed emergency goalie duty on a key defensive save while Emily Knapp ’15 kicked away two balls to keep the Lord Jeffs scoreless.
“We were really happy with how we played against Amherst, so against Bowdoin we just said ‘Let’s go out and do the same,’” Fowler said.
Bowdoin flicked in two quick goals in the first six minutes of the game but did nothing to dampen the stormproof confidence of the Middlebury squad.
Instead, the team collectively buckled down during the ensuing timeout called by head coach Katharine DeLorenzo.
“We weren’t rattled by it,” said captain Ellie O’Brien. “It was a cool experience because no one was down at all.”
In the 16th minute of play the Panthers surged on a quick transition and Katherine Theiss ’14 hounded over the Bowdoin goalie before a rebound bounced toward Instrum for the goal.
Middlebury spent the next ten minutes pounding the ball into Bowdoin’s defensive circle, and finally on the seventh entry the ball nipped a Bowdoin foot to win a corner for Middlebury. O’Brien and Instrum connected three quick passes in tight space along the end line to shake two Bowdoin defenders before Instrum slammed in a clean goal to tie the game at 2-2.
Back on level footing, the teams tussled without a goal until two minutes before halftime when a long hit from Bowdoin star Katie Riley rattled around in front and trickled over the line for a goal.
To make matters worse, Bowdoin earned a penalty stroke shortly after halftime on a play where Middlebury goalie Emily Knapp ’16 slid aggressively to stop a Polar Bear rush, but ended up smothering the ball illegally. Bowdoin converted the stroke, pushing Middlebury into another two-goal deficit.
With 10:31 left in the game, a miscue by the referee team prompted over 10 minutes of hushed bickering and deliberation. During the break, something strange happened — still trailing by two goals, the Middlebury players started to dance while the Bowdoin players stood like tombstones.
“On the field we kept it a little bit more contained, but everyone on the bench was really going for it,” said O’Brien.
“Rock This Party by Bob Sinclair,” said Kahn, smiling. “It’s a song we’ve always used to get pumped up for every game. We were down by two but cheering like we were up five.”
Right off the whistle O’Brien inserted the ball again to Instrum, but this time Instrum faked the return pass and drilled a reverse backhander just inside the near post to make the score 4-3 Bowdoin.
The sidelines were still bouncing in rhythm two minutes later when Lauren Berestecky ’16 slung a waist high shot at cage and the rebound hovered juicily for Instrum to smack upward into the net, tying the game at four.
“We could not have done it without the sidelines pumping us up,” said Instrum, whose four scores tied the NESCAC Championship record and earned her Player of the Week honors.
Two minutes into overtime, Alyssa DiMaio spun her way into the offensive arc to earn a corner chance, and atop the box Fowler and O’Brien shared a moment of understanding, drawing up the game’s conclusive play. Sure enough, the Bowdoin defense collapsed on Fowler as she drove to the net and DiMaio wrote the final note of an unforgettable comeback with a diving poke past the Bowdoin goalie, summoning a raucous dog pile of teammates celebrating their second consecutive NESCAC title.
Middlebury hosts the Regional Round of the NCAA Tournament Saturday, Nov. 16 and Sunday, Nov. 17.
(11/06/13 10:17pm)
Middlebury crawled over the Colby Mules on Saturday, Nov. 2 by a score of 3-0 to win the quarterfinal round of NESCAC tournament play. With their season hanging on the Kohn field scoreboard, Lauren Berestecky ’17, Bridget Instrum ’16 and Katie Theiss ’14 hustled to hammer home the difference-making goals. The Panthers now prepare for next weekend’s trip to Amherst, where they will battle the Lord Jeffs on Saturday, Nov. 9 for an opportunity to play the NESCAC title game the following day.
Before the ball even started rolling, a scratch on the traditional national anthem CD turned a predictable pregame ritual into a razzling performance. In a tremendous sports moment, Mary Claire Ecclesine ’16 and Cassie Coash ’15 warmed the cool November air with their silky rendition of The Star Spangled Banner. Theiss proclaimed the surprise anthem the best vocal performance ever heard, while fans and players alike hope the live anthem becomes a Middlebury mainstay.
The harsh percussion of wooden sticks knocking together and the quieter sliding of skin on cold turf signified the new intensity level that comes with the NESCAC playoffs. Citing numerous early lunges from Berestecky in particular, Catherine Fowler ’15 attested to the new ferocity on the pitch.
“You see a lot more players diving for balls than in the regular season,” she said.
The persistence paid off for the Panthers. After 15 minutes, Berestecky intercepted a clear attempt and snapped it back through traffic for the all-important first goal. When the first half concluded, Middlebury held an 11-0 shots advantage but still led by just one uneasy goal.
Only two minutes into the second half, Instrum received a pass from Jillian Green ’16 and chipped a swift backhand past the Colby goalie’s nearside shoulder. The exceptionally athletic Instrum alongside the lanky speedsters Hanna Deoul ’14 and Chrissy Ritter ’16 have been weapons off the sideline for the offensive unit, complicating defensive assignments for opponents. Forwards Theiss and Ritter orchestrated the third goal on a play where Ritter hid behind the defense and came backwards to make a quick layoff to Theiss for the score.
“It’s difficult to play defense when the player you are guarding switches a lot and you need to keep adjusting for different types of players,” midfielder Ellie O’Brien ’14 said.
That is one reason why Middlebury eagerly anticipates a rematch with the rival Amherst team, who Middlebury defeated in overtime 4-3 while being shorthanded all nine freshman during the Middview orientation in the first weekend of the semester. Middlebury expects another rough and physical game on the pellet-ridden Amherst turf, so the team wants a competitive week of practice to prepare.
Middlebury could seal a bid for the NCAA tournament by winning two games this coming weekend, although the strength of its record and schedule could already qualify for an at-large bid. If the fourth-ranked Panthers move on, Middlebury will be a likely host for a round of the NCAA playoffs, snow or shine.
(11/06/13 5:22pm)
12 hours after the witching hour on Halloween, the U.S. Women’s National Hockey team flew past Finland by a score of 5-1 in Middlebury’s Kenyon Arena. If any of the trick-or-treaters in the crowd stayed up late eating candy, the rush of seeing Olympic stars spray up ice before their eyes proved enough to rile them from their seats. The United Way raised over $1,800 on the day from voluntary donations in lieu of entrance fees, and in turn the fans reveled in the world-class abilities of the touring USA women.
Finland scored a quick powerplay goal less than two minutes into the game that wound up the game’s energy as the American silver medal winners from the 2010 Winter Olympics sought to reestablish the natural order. However, Finland stood its ground and maintained a one-goal lead into an anxious first intermission.
Some sort of Halloween beast stirred awake while the Zamboni cleaned the ice, and the second period became an offensive field day for team USA, who punched nineteen shots on the Finnish cage while allowing only one. Megan Bozek sprung a wrist shot past the blocker of the Finnish goaltender to tie the game at one. Then, two minutes later, Annie Pankowski broke down the right wing and fired a bullet just inside the left post. USA would light the lamp a third time, when Hilary Knight curled at the top of the faceoff circle and tucked a fully corked wrist shot with tremendous accuracy into the top-right corner.
“We had a lot of momentum and we really came at them full speed, we didn’t let them do anything they wanted to do,” Pankowski told Channel 5 reporters.
The American dominance continued in the third period, as Knight deflected a shin-high shot past the shielded goalie. In the final minute, Jocelyn Lamoreaux stuffed home the fifth and final goal off a firm centering pass from behind the goal line that created the opportunity.
Beneath the unified attack, Team USA played with the intensity of a squad whose individual players are still competing for a limited number of plane tickets to Sochi, Russia for the upcoming Olympic games. One player vying for a spot is prodigious sixteen-year-old Jincy Dunne, who would be the second-ever sixteen year old to skate with the U.S. Womens Olympic team. The final roster of only twenty-one players culled from the current forty-one will be decided in December, according to the official Team USA Olympic website.
Amazingly, Dunne could even overlap at college with some of the tittering youth hockey players who flocked to Kenyon to watch the game. By chance, the town of Middlebury scheduled parent/teacher conferences on Friday, freeing up the youngest segment of Panther faithful for the international affair.
Another corner of the rink brimmed with about thirty baggy red jerseys on pretzel-munching, nacho-selecting kids playing hooky for hockey. The Chittenden South Burlington Youth Hockey club transported a whole troupe of youth hockey players, mostly girls, from the ages eight to twelve to see their idols play.
Middlebury’s Athletic Director Erin Quinn marveled at the impact of the game on the many pint-sized hockey players in attendance.
“If you’re a kid that age, wearing your jersey, watching the women of this caliber play right there on the other side of the glass — that’s pretty cool,” Quinn said. “If you’re someone my age watching these women play — it’s pretty cool too.”
The Sochi Olympics begin this February, and Middlebury can cheer proudly for the familiar faces of U.S. Womens Hockey as they perform their quadrennial metamorphosis from hard working hockey players into American heroes on the world’s icy oval stage.
(10/16/13 5:41pm)
The Panthers scored and roared above their weekend opponents, scolding Trinity 5-0 on Saturday, Oct. 12 and topping Hamilton 4-1 on Sunday, Oct. 13. Anna Kenyon ’16 and Bridget Instrum ’16 lifted the team chemistry and speed of play, and deceptive playmaker Alyssa DiMaio ’15 found a well-deserved scoring touch. The seniors delivered memorable performances on both days to kiss the spongy Kohn field goodbye.
Middlebury orchestrated its most professional and overpowering game of the year against Trinity to please a large crowd of proud parents in the bleachers. On the first corner of the game, Catherine Fowler ’15 used Ellie O’Brien ’14 like a wall to shed a defender before finding some open net.
The Panthers took 11 hits on the Trinity goal in the first half while Meredith Rowe ’14 and Anna Kenyon ’15 infuriated the Trinity offense by allowing not a single shot.
“Meredith is such a brick wall in the back,” DiMaio said. “Everyone is so confident in her and she really can’t get enough credit for what she does.”
Kenyon especially glued the defensive door shut with her vocal leadership from the sweeper position much to the appreciation of her teammates.
Katherine Theiss ’14 shook the tree trunk early in the second half and goals fluttered into the Trinity cage. Theiss seized the shin-high rebound and shot quickly to beat the goalie. Next, Fowler drove right and cranked a shot that Hannah Deoul ’14 tipped perfectly through traffic for another energizing goal. Nine minutes later, Bridget Instrum ’16 tapped in a lateral pass across the goal line from O’Brien to make it 4-0. Later on, Kenyon earned a penalty stroke which NESCAC-leading-scorer Fowler coolly slotted.
Middlebury rolled its momentum forward over Hamilton on Sunday, scoring four goals and allowing only one goal with five minutes left in the game. Coach Katharine DeLorenzo honored all of the seniors with a starting position in their last home game, including an emotionally lifting start for Hana Kahn ‘14, who hobbled on and off the field with a broken femur.
Early in the first half, Theiss converted on her second of two quick baseball swing hacks in front of the goal, setting the tone for another exciting, high-scoring affair.
Fulfilling a pregame prophecy of teammate Kenyon, DiMaio clapped in the game’s next two goals, hiding near the goal post to nimbly redirect two blurrily fast shots coming from the outside, bringing Middlebury ahead quickly to 3-0.
“Coach DeLorenzo had me practice tipping all week, making sure I kept my stick on the ground,” DiMaio said. “In the game, I sort of just closed my eyes and got lucky.”
Fowler iced the cake for the second consecutive game, scoring the fourth goal on yet another designed corner play, one that smartly advantages from her laser-fast shot.
The players offered several different explanations for their improved play over the weekend, pointing to their coaches and team leaders as the primary fuel.
“It feels like we are clicking now,” Olivia Jurkowitz ’17 said. “For a while Coach DeLorenzo played with a lot of different formations, but she seems to have found something now that really works.”
During the week, the Panthers repeated the mantra “As One” to imagine playing together like individual body parts under a single brain. The mantra and all-week competitive attitude trickle down from captains O’Brien and Deidre Miller ’14.
“The captains are a big part of the focus,” DiMaio said. “At practice, we’re at practice and can’t be anywhere else.”
Kenyon voiced her satisfaction with the game result of the week’s efforts in practice.
“We are working the ball in-and-out, making the small diagonal passes, and looking for the 2-on-1’s now rather than just taking big hits forward,” she said.
All forecasts looking strong, Middlebury looks to build its hurricane momentum over the weekend with its two final regular season games Saturday, Oct. 19 at Bates and Sunday, Oct. 20 at Wesleyan.
(10/09/13 11:02pm)
Middlebury (8-2) stomached a 4-2 loss to last year’s national champion Tufts Jumbos (7-1) on Saturday, Oct. 5 but recovered to celebrate a 5-0 win against M.I.T. on Sunday Oct. 6.
The team covered many miles, both literally and figuratively. The trip to Boston and back was a long one, during which the team learned a great deal about how to motivate and prepare for their four remaining regular-season games. Although the Tufts game frustrated and embarrassed the Panthers, Sunday’s complete performance absolved their blunders and razzed the team with rediscovered confidence. Anna Kenyon ’16 returned strongly to action after knee surgery while Bridget Instrum ’16 and Katherine Theiss ’14 also energized the Panthers with flashes of exceptional field hockey.
Middlebury opened with a less than bouncy start on the rubbery field turf of Tufts on Saturday. The small flecks of recycled tire beneath the artificial grass slowed the pace, to the Panthers’ dismay, and handcuffed their skillful passing style of play against the more physical Jumbos.
Tufts pounded into Middlebury’s zone early to earn a penalty stroke, but goaltender Emily Knapp ’15 dove to her left to keep the game scoreless. No defensive heroics could ignite the offense, and the first half ended 1-0 for Tufts with just three shots for Middlebury.
“We did not step off the bus ready to play. We started with pretty low energy,” said offensive force Catherine Fowler ’15.
Fowler helped to rally the team briefly in the second half by dishing to Theiss for a goal. However, Tufts would respond immediately to score three goals in twelve minutes, one goal coming far too easily on an inexplicable defensive lapse on a Tufts corner play. In the last seven minutes, the four Middlebury forwards finally tapped into the fight, earning a corner for Pam Schulman ’17 to smack home, but Tufts clamped the potential comeback into just a final whimper.
“I prefer to lose now in the regular season than in the postseason because it gives us a chance to learn,” Fowler said.
Last years team went all regular season without losing, and the first loss against Depauw in the NCAA Regional caught them by lethal surprise.
After the game on Saturday, the team joined heads for 30 minutes to discuss the loss, during which they all agreed that the team’s preparation was lackluster.
“We need to play for the full seventy minutes,” said Kenyon, referring to the sluggish start on Saturday. “Also, we spoke about the difference between deciding to win rather than assuming we are going to.”
On Sunday, Middlebury returned to form by deciding to demolish an unsuspecting M.I.T. team. Theiss redirected a long drive from Fowler in the 13th minute that jumped above the M.I.T. goalie and propelled Middlebury to a hot start. Unlike other teams that have packed in defensively against Middlebury, M.I.T. left enough space for the Panthers to score some pretty goals on the run rather than hitting shins or feet and needing to score on corner plays.
Instrum brought Middlebury ahead 2-0 before the second half by gutsily stealing the ball near the midfield line and weaving through a slew of defenders between her and the M.I.T. goal line before fooling the keeper. Schulman and Fowler coordinated a surge of scoring just after halftime, scoring two goals in under one minute to push the Panthers to a four goal lead. For the last word, Lauren Berestecky ’17 received a pass from Ellie O’Brien ’14 and scooped a nifty backhander into the corner for her fourth tally of the season.
The bus ride back from M.I.T. bore little resemblance to the scene a day earlier, the players and even head coach Katharine DeLorenzo taking turns at the bus microphone for karaoke. Fittingly, the coach gave a rendition of Marvin Gaye’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” allegorically describing the highs and lows of Middlebury’s season so far.
The Panthers happily return to their native turf next weekend to play Trinity on Saturday, Oct. 12 and Hamilton on Sunday, Oct. 13, the last two home games of the regular season.
(10/02/13 5:37pm)
Middlebury picked up two hard-fought wins over the weekend, beating Colby 2-0 on Saturday, Sept. 28 and Williams 2-1 on Sunday, Sept. 29, adding a third victory over Skidmore on Tuesday, Oct. 1. Coach Katherine DeLorenzo became the Middlebury Field Hockey’s most successful coach with 183 career victories to date.
The narrow margins of victory 2-0 and 2-1 raise less concern about the quality of Middlebury’s play, rather than announcing the increasing competitiveness of programs across the NESCAC league. The defensive performances of both Colby and Williams, parrying away large shot advantages for Middlebury, showed that both teams prepared well to counter the Panthers offensive power.
Despite not registering blowout wins, Catherine Fowler ’15 believes that this is not a bad thing.
“It’s exciting now that every game is up in the air. Not many teams are not going down by eight goals like they used to,” she said.
On Saturday, Fowler opened the scoring after converting a goal off of a penalty corner eight minutes into the game. Fowler received the ball smoothly, slid it around a Colby defender to Elinore O’Brien ’14 on her right, who drew the goalie’s attention before reversing it right back to Fowler for an easy put-away.
The Panthers defended the less frequent Colby attacks by committing plenty of bodies back and having Emily Knapp ’15 yelling orders from her spot in goal. Chrissy Ritter ’16 hustled all the way back from her forward position numerous times to catch Colby from behind and retake possession.
Central defender Meredith Rowe ’14 also played rock solid defense throughout the game with block tackle takeaways that caught the Mules by surprise. The risky move requires holding the stick flat on the ground to create a road block for the rushing opponent.
“I wish I could put down a block tackle like she does,” Fowler said “It’s definitely comforting to know that she is back there.”
Before halftime, Bridget Instrum ’17 nearly added her first goal, spinning and lifting a rebound opportunity above a prone Colby keeper who flailed a stick upwards to deflect the goal away.
The second half proceeded tensely as Middlebury yearned for a bigger lead but Colby’s tightly packed defense resisted blow after blow.
With about four minutes left in the game, Lauren Berestecky ’17 found the ball near the top of the Colby arc and muscled to her right around a lunging defender before careening a bouncer off the the left wall of the goal to effectively seal the game. Once again a testament to DeLorenzo, the play mirrored the exact drill that the forwards practiced over and over that week.
Scoring her first goal as a Panther, Berestecky was relieved to pass that milestone.
“It was good to get the first one out of the way and take that pressure off,” she said.
On Sunday, against Williams, no fan or player could shrug about Berestecky’s goal, as she struck yet again to break the tie in the 54th minute. As designed in the set corner play, Fowler fired a shot toward the right post where Berestecky battled it away from a defender and shoved it into the goal.
Middlebury spent the majority of the afternoon experimenting in the Williams zone, earning 20 corners to Williams’ one. The Panthers dug deep into their corner playbook, calling a dozen different plays to finally overcome the stingy Williams defense.
Two minutes after breaking the ice, Fowler scored on yet another corner opportunity, sidestepping the first defender and punching a low shot past the Williams goalie.
The lone goal that Middlebury conceded over the weekend puttered over the goal line for Williams with just over one minute left to play. Middlebury wound the clock by letting Alyssa DiMaio ’15 carry the ball forward and avoid the swarm of Williams tacklers.
The Panthers stalked and snacked on the Skidmore Thoroughbreds on Tuesday night, piling on four late goals to win 4-0. The glistening green turf, slightly wetter at night than during the day, charged up the team to play its most crisp and dynamic game of the streak.
“We really played our game tonight,” said Ellie O’Brien. “We moved the ball well from the middle out to the wing on the attack.”
The first half ended scoreless, but the chase finally ended midway through the second when Instrum beat a Skidmore defender one-on-one and chipped a pretty backhand shot high into the goal. Shortly after, Berestecky and Rowe sunk two more goals. The last lick of the feast went to captain Deidre Miller ’14, who skillfully deflected a shot from Hannah Deoul ‘14, increaing the Panthers lead 4-0-—the game’s final score line.
The Panthers travel down to Boston to face Tufts on Saturday, Oct. 5 before taking on MIT on Sunday, Oct. 6.
(09/25/13 7:50pm)
The Polar Bears relieved Middlebury of the pressure of repeating an undefeated season by handing the Panthers a 4-2 loss on Saturday, Sept. 21. With nine minutes to go, Katie Theiss ’14 evened the score at 2-2, but Bowdoin snuffed out the comeback with two late goals to give Middlebury its first loss.
The Panthers clawed uphill for the bulk of the game, playing over 60 minutes of the 70-minute game while down one goal – a position of urgency and desperation that Middlebury has yet to experience this year and encountered only once all last year, in the NESCAC Championship game at home against Bowdoin, which Middlebury won in a post-overtime stroke-off.
The back-and-forth first half shook out underneath moving clouds that cast the Bowdoin turf in bright sunshine one moment and cold shadow the next. Similarly, the Panthers shined in certain aspects but were frustrated by others.
Alyssa DiMaio ’15, one of Middlebury’s main motors in the midfield, spoke about the lapses in her team’s play.
“One of the things we normally do really well is connect between the forward and the midfield, but [on Saturday] we struggled to make those connections,” she said. “Communication is one thing we are going to work on going forward.”
Bowdoin got its offensive engine running early, using a redirection near the right post to beat Middlebury goalie Cassie Coash ’15, who kept Middlebury alive with 10 saves that day. Coash swatted and admirably kicked away Bowdoin’s attempts in just her second game donning the goalie gear for Middlebury.
Fifteen minutes later, the Panthers scored a goal of their own, with DiMaio and Ellie O’Brien ’14 setting up Catherine Fowler ’15 to steam home a shot from the top of the circle, tying the game at 1-1 before halftime. The trio has played well on penalty corners this year. When Fowler does not find a lane to score, Theiss often pounces on a ball from shorter range.
Middlebury began the second half with an element of confident comfort, trusting that one of its talented weapons, Alex Kuzma ’17 or Jillian Green ’15, would eventually fire in a go-ahead goal. However, Bowdoin’s slicing offensive rush into Middlebury’s arc drew a penalty stroke foul. Bowdoin capitalized on the free shot, activating the fight-or-flight desperation in the Middlebury side.
Coach Katherine DeLorenzo shifted up an extra forward to spark some offense, and indeed the Panthers earned a pair of corners they failed to put away. But as Middlebury became more aggressive, the chances began to open up for Bowdoin as well. Whenever Middlebury dealt an offensive blow, the speedy Bowdoin midfielders would race to counterattack.
With eight minutes and 22 seconds remaining on the clock, Theiss finally lifted Middlebury back to even footing on another penalty corner goal. The enthusiasm and encouragement from the sidelined players, which DeLorenzo commended for its impact on the game, reached a throaty peak and Middlebury seemed to hold the momentum.
In heartbreaking fashion, Bowdoin scored just 22 seconds later to clamp the vice back on the Panthers and scored again three minutes later to ensure the win.
“I think it is a good thing, a sort of reality check,” Anne Entwisle ’15 said positively.
After overcoming the initial disappointment and frustration of the loss, other players have also changed to a heartier tune.
“As much as we all feel upset about the loss, I am excited to see how it fires us up to go in a positive direction,” defender Hana Kahn ’14 said.
Middlebury’s first opportunity to erupt forward comes on Wednesday, Sept. 25 against Castleton St. before a double-header at home on Saturday, Sept. 28 against NESCAC foes Colby and Sunday, Sept. 29 against Williams.
Last season the Panthers had no trouble dispatching of these opponents, with a combined score over three games of 18-0. Being on home turf against conference opponents can only help the Panthers’ chances of rebounding from this weekend’s loss.
(09/18/13 11:56pm)
Middlebury christened their home turf on Saturday, Sept. 14 with a convincing 5-1 victory over Connecticut College before the next day dismissing St. Lawrence by a score of 4-0 on the road on Sunday, Sept. 15. The first-year players inspired optimism in their return from their Middview trips, while returning leaders Katherine Theiss ’14, Catherine Fowler ’15 and Ellie O’Brien ’14 played with punishing effectiveness. On Sunday, defenseman Cassie Coash ’15 displayed her new talent between the pipes in her first career start in goal.
The impressive weekend assuaged initial concerns that Middlebury would falter after losing the on-field services of prolific scorer and two-time NESCAC Player of the Year, Lauren Greer ’13. Greer now serves as assistant coach, providing a steadying presence to her former teammates and new players.
On Saturday, first-year forward Pam Schulman ’17 made clear that new class of Panthers would play a significant role in rebuilding the team. Right from the opening whistle, Schulman charged skillfully down the right wing and clanged a running shot into the low left corner of the goal. About five minutes later, a nifty backhand centering pass from Theiss earned Middlebury a corner and Schulman found the noisy backboard of the goal once more. Schulman came inches from finishing the game with her first career hat trick, but a scoop shot banged high off the cross bar.
“There was a big crowd in front of the net, and before the game coach DeLorenzo told me that if I see space up high to go for it,” Schulman said.
Middlebury also cheered the strong performances of first-years Olivia Jurkowitz ’17 and Alex Kuzma ’17, who each tallied an assist, and Lauren Beresteckic ’17 who repeatedly threatened with her speed down the wing and forced Conn. to commit several costly fouls. Josie Trichka ’17 and Lily Taub ’17 also contributed good minutes.
Meanwhile, veteran Panther players, especially Theiss, Fowler, and captains Deidre Miller ’14 and O’Brien have already stepped up into new leadership roles this season. O’Brien praises the scrappiness of individual players like the aforementioned Berestecki, and likens her current team to a determined group of “little engines that can.”
With the all-time record goal scorer Greer limited to coaching, the team has responded in hydra-like fashion, with talents Theiss and Fowler already showing a powerful scoring appetite in her absence on the field. O’Brien showed a mastery of the defensive midfield position, stymying any potential rushes as they came and effectively distributing the ball up field. Not including set pieces, the Camels were only able to produce one shot on the Middlebury goal. Electrifying junior midfielder Alyssa DiMaio ’15 worked well with O’Brien on Saturday, drawing praise from her captain as a sleeper All-American candidate.
“[She] makes everyone on the team look better,” said O’Brien on the effect of her ball control and passing on the game.
The Saturday game progressed comfortably for Middlebury, and Theiss drew a small roar from the one hundred and twenty-five fans in the bleachers when she redirected a hard shin-high blast from Kuzma upward and past the Camels’ keeper for Middlebury’s third goal. Connecticut College finally found an answer after Middlebury conceded a corner and the Camels connected for a rebound goal. Fowler, last week’s NESCAC Player of the Week, fired off a number of heavy shots from the arc, but the Connecticut goalkeeper made a series of acrobatic saves. Eventually it was Theiss, who persisted and scored the next two goals for Middlebury, that earned a hat trick and ensured the team’s win.
Sunday presented a different challenge for the Panthers, as the game was the continuation weather-suspended match against St. Lawrence. Despite the delay, the team rolled to a commanding 4-0 victory. Kuzma scored her first Middlebury goal to give the Panthers a halftime lead, and Bridget Instrum ’16 added her own before two set-piece shots from Fowler iced the cake.
Although the Panther defense denied St. Lawrence from getting a shot on goal, the game was anything but stress-free for goalie Coash, in cage for the first time at Middlebury. Coach Katharine DeLorenzo called an emergency goalie tryout on Saturday night to find a replacement, and two hours of blocking, kicking and flopping later Coash earned the starting nod. After surviving the game easily, teammates Madeline Despins ’15 and Anne Entwisle ’15 could laugh with Coash about her impeccable positioning and always-ready hands as the rest of the Panthers kept the ball far from her net.
Now, boasting a spotless 3-0 start to the season, a tough away contest against Bowdoin looms as the first major test of this gritty, balanced Middlebury team. The teams face off in Maine on Saturday, Sept. 21.