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(03/23/16 10:37pm)
The seventh-ranked Middlebury men’s lacrosse team returned to their winning ways last Saturday, March 19 when they traveled to take on the Wesleyan Cardinals. In their second overtime contest in as many games the Panthers emerged on top, scoring just 50 seconds into overtime to earn a big 9-8 NESCAC win. Middlebury looks to start another winning streak on Tuesday when they head to Plattsburgh State for an out-of-conference matchup.
The Panthers came out of the gates firing on all cylinders as they scored all three goals in the first quarter. The first, a Cedric Rhodes ’17 finish from a Jon Broome ’16 assist, came just 2:36 into the game. Broome continued to facilitate and dished another opening quarter assist with 5:28 remaining, this time setting up a Sean Carroll ’16 tally. Jack Gould ’19 finished the Panthers’ explosive first quarter with an unassisted goal with less than two minutes on the clock to give the squad the 3-0 lead.
Wesleyan finally found a way to get themselves on the scoreboard at the 2:12 mark in the second quarter when Niall Devaney found the back of the net. As the hosts started to tighten up defensively and prevent the Middlebury fireworks that marked the opening quarter, their offense continued to attack as just 1:30 later Taylor Ghesquiere cut the Panther lead to one.
That tight defense would not last long, however, as the electric Middlebury offense started to find its rhythm again, this time in the form of back-to-back goals in a run spanning just over a minute. Yet another Broome assist, the most consistent form of offense Middlebury has seen all year, led to a Joey Zelkowitz ’17 goal before a Jack Cleary ’16 strike re-extended the Middlebury lead to three with 3:09 remaining. The half ultimately ended 6-3 in favor of the Panthers after the two sides traded goals to finish the quarter.
The third quarter was marked by further battling from both sides as Middlebury again responded to an early Cardinal charge. After the home team scored the first two to again cut the lead to one, the Panthers responded with two late goals from Henry Riehl ’18 and Gould with 3:03 and 20 seconds remaining, respectively. In typical NESCAC fashion, however, Wesleyan battled their way back into the contest, erasing the 8-5 deficit by scoring all three goals in the fourth quarter. Harry Stanton led the Cardinal resurgence with an unprecedented single quarter hat trick.
It was the Panther defense, however, that prevailed when a Jack Defrino ’17 caused turnover led to a Dylan Fowler ’16 ground ball. On the ensuing Panther clear, Wesleyan was flagged for a penalty and gave the Panthers a man-up opportunity with five seconds left in regulation. As a result, Middlebury entered overtime with a man-up possession and a clear offensive game plan. After patiently working the ball around the perimeter, Gould ripped the game winner and his third tally of the day from 20 yards within 50 seconds of the start of the four-minute overtime period.
Goalie Will Ernst ’17 had eight saves to earn the win as Middlebury held a 39-28 advantage in shots. The Panthers went 1-2 in man-up situations and Wesleyan was unsuccessful in its lone opportunity.
The team earned their second straight victory in a 10-8 road win at Plattsburgh St. on Tuesday afternoon. Led by first-year Gould’s second hat-trick in as many games, the Panthers won yet another game decided by two or fewer goals, the fourth such contest of the season. After Plattsburgh found the back of the net less than five minutes into the first quarter to get out to an early lead, Middlebury came roaring back with a four goal streak to end the opening quarter. All three of Gould’s goals came during the streak, which culminated in a 4-1 Panther lead heading into the second quarter.
The two sides traded goals in the second quarter to end the first half with a score of 6-3 in favor of the visiting Panthers.
The Cardinals refused to go down easily, however, and came out in the third quarter with a three-goal streak of their own to tie the contest. Again the two teams traded two goal runs as the fourth quarter continued. Middlebury tallied goals from Tim Giarrusso ’16 and Kyle Soroka ’16, the latter on a man-up opportunity, Plattsburgh responded again to notch the game at 8-8 with 7:15 left to play. As has been the case for much of the year, a couple of Panther seniors stepped up when the team needed them most. Giarrusso scored his second to break the tie at 5:36 before Broome scored what would be the last goal of the game to make it 10-8 and effectively ice the Middlebury win with 3:17 left.
Broome capped the scoring with 3:17 left and made it a 10-8 final. The Cardinals owned a slight shot advantage (35-30), while the Panthers owned a 38-23 edge in ground balls.
Middlebury returns to action Saturday when the squad heads to Bowdoin for a huge NESCAC matchup on the road.
(03/17/16 2:56am)
As the sun shined bright and Main Street bustled with attendees of the 8th Annual Vermont Chili Festival, the seventh-ranked Middlebury men’s lacrosse team welcomed defending national champions and top-seeded Tufts to Youngman Field at Alumni Stadium on Saturday, March 12. After going down by three goals early in the game, the Panthers battled back to eventually tie their NESCAC rival in the fourth quarter before ultimately falling to the Jumbos by a score of 12-10.
The Jumbos got on the board quickly with a Jake Gillespie goal just 22 seconds into the contest, followed shortly by a nice finish from Tim Giarrusso ’16 to tie the game at one apiece. Gillespie, along with the rest of the Tufts offense, maintained momentum and powered the Jumbos to a 3-0 run with his Gillespie’s second of the day, in addition to tallies from Ben Andreycak and Austin Carbone over a span of just 1:50 in the first quarter. The Panthers stopped the bleeding with a rally from senior leadership as co-captain Jon Broome ’16 found midfielder Jack Cleary ’16 from behind the cage for a high shot to notch the score at 4-2 for the remainder of the first quarter.
The Panthers came out with a new level of intensity in the second quarter, peppering Tufts goaltender Alex Salazar with three shots in quick succession before Giarrusso found the net for his second goal of the day to bring the home team within one with 13:57 remaining. However, the Jumbos offense picked up right where it left off in the first quarter and responded by scoring four of the next five, including two bouncers from Cam Irwin and Kyle Howard-Johnson at 10:12 and 9:15, respectively. Again, a Panther senior stepped up to keep Middlebury in the game as Sean Carroll ’16 converted a Broome feed with 6:46 remaining. After a pair of Tufts goals only 31 seconds apart from John Uppgren and Andreycak, the Panthers put together a quality extended possession that ultimately culminated in a Henry Riehl ’18 goal and another Broome assist. Their efforts brought the score to 8-5 in favor of the Jumbos as the first half came to an end.
The game settled down in the second half as the Middlebury defense locked in and prevented the extended scoring streaks that had defined much of the first half. Instead, the Panthers put together a streak of their own with goals from Kyle Soroka ’16 and Jack Gould ’19 at 10:51 and 9:29. Tufts’ Connor Bilby responded to Middlebury’s best offensive run of the day with a piece of individual talent in a nice dodge and finished with just 3:02 remaining in the third quarter. Momentum swung back to the home side, however, when solid play on both sides of the ball resulted in a Middlebury goal. After causing a turnover in the final minute, Parker Lawlor ’18 scooped the ball before firing a goal with just eight seconds left to bring the Panthers within one heading into the final quarter.
Although Andreycak’s third tally with 12:13 remaining gave the visitors the 10-8 advantage, Middlebury continued to demonstrate their defining grit and resolve throughout the final quarter. John Jackson ’18 was a force from the faceoff, affording the Panthers valuable possession opportunities by going 15-25 in addition to scooping six ground balls. Gould got the offense rolling in the fourth, converting on a man-up opportunity just a minute before Lawlor scored his second unassisted goal of the day to level the score at 10-10 with 9:05 remaining. Only 20 seconds later, Gillespie dodged from the right side and found the back of the net for the eventual game-winning goal, while Andreycak added another at 7:38 to round-out Tufts’ offensive effort. The Panthers fired four shots in the remaining minutes but could not pull any closer as Tufts took possession in the final minute and ran out the clock.
While ultimately unable to gain the advantage in scoring, the Panthers outplayed Tufts in many categories throughout the contest. Notably, Middlebury nearly doubled their opponent in shots, posting a 59-30 advantage as well as a 32-27 edge in ground balls. The Jumbos relied on consistent goaltending in the win, with Salazar recording 18 saves on the day while Will Ernst ’17 made nine stops for the Panthers.
Clearing was a strength for both teams, with the Panthers finding success on 13 of their 15 opportunities, while the Jumbos went 18-22. Middlebury was 2-3 while playing with an extra man, while Tufts posted a goal in four tries.
“We just need to keep improving on a daily basis,” said Broome, one of Middlebury’s captains. “The game against Tufts showed that we can play with any team in the country, but it was also clear that we still have a lot of work on. Specifically, we need to be better in unsettled situations on both ends of the field.”
The Middlebury men’s lacrosse team dropped their second straight game on Tuesday, March 15 when St. Lawrence came to Youngman Field at Alumni Stadium. In nail-biting double overtime fashion the Saints took a 14-13 victory from the Panthers at home, a place where victories traditionally do not come easily to opponents. As a result, Middlebury’s record drops to 2-2; a line they will look to improve this Saturday when they travel to Wesleyan to play an ever-important NESCAC matchup. St. Lawrence returns to action on Saturday as well when they travel to Davenport, Fla. to take on Western New England University.
Both sides came out of the gate hot as the Saints’ Conor Healy opened the game only 1:10 into the contest a little more than a minute before Cedric Rhodes ’17 responded with an underhand strike from 10 yards away. The trend continued as Jordan Dow ’18 put the guests back in front at 9:36, only to bring on another Middlebury response as Michael McCormack ’19 ripped his first career goal with 9:12 remaining. St. Lawrence began to take the game over, however, as Healey and Dow led the Saints on a four goal run to put the visiting side up 6-2. After Jon Broome ’16 finished a Jack Cleary ’16 feed with only half a second left in the first quarter, Middlebury started the second quarter with a Rhodes man-up goal to make it a 6-4 contest with 13:49 left. Again, the Saints responded with a multiple goal run to give the visitors the 8-4 advantage. To counter, Middlebury looked to its senior leadership and found some in the form of two straight goals from Broome, on scoop and dish assists from Kyle Soroka ’16 and Harrison Goodkind ’16, respectively. Andrew Jarret ’17 gave St. Lawrence the 9-6 advantage heading into the half when he scored with only 24 seconds remaining.
After an offensively dominated first half which saw 15 goals, the third quarter had just three. Middlebury opened the final quarter by going on a four goal run of their own including the final two from a Jack Gould ’19 goaland the same connection culminating in a Soroka goal to give the Panthers a 12-10 advantage with 10:47 left. After a two goal counter by the Saints and Gould’s third of the day, an unassisted rip with only 2:11 left on the clock, Dow scored his fourth to equalize the contest at 13-13 and force overtime with just six seconds left. Sean Carroll ’16 had the best look in the first four-minute overtime period when he found space 10 yards out but ripped it just high. St. Lawrence’s Vautor then found space with just over a minute left in the second period, only to be denied by goalie Will Ernst ’17, who had 10 saves on the day. After a Middlebury possession that yielded a pair of shots with a man-up chance, Dow ended the game in the closing seconds redirecting a pin-point pass by Alec Dietsch ’17 from the right side for the Saint victory.
(03/10/16 4:03am)
The Middlebury men’s lacrosse team opened up the season last Saturday, March 5, with a big 5-4 win over their NESCAC rival Connecticut College, followed by a 16-10 defeat of Endicott on Tuesday, March 8.
With the win, the Panthers, currently ranked sixth nationally, continued last year’s trend of domination at home. The Panthers have now won 11 straight games on Youngman Field at Alumni Stadium after going 10-0 on their home turf in 2015.
After the Panthers held Conn. College scoreless in the first quarter, in large part due to the play of goalkeeper Will Ernst ’17 who made three of his 12 saves in the opening period on his way to being named NESCAC Player of the Week, the Camels’ Ross Thompson broke the tie with 13:10 left in the second quarter with an unassisted shot from 12 yards out.
The Panthers refused to stay down for long, however, as Joey Zelkowitz ’17, a First Team All-NESCAC selection last year, responded with a caused turnover and a coast-to-coast goal less than three minutes later. The Panthers kept firing and took advantage of a man-up opportunity at the 7:05 mark when Kyle Soroka ’16 fed first-year Jack Gould ’19 for Gould’s first career point.
The Camels, in typical gritty NESCAC fashion, evened the score at 2-2 with 2:35 left in the first half when Tucker Mscisz scored his first of two goals on the day.
Mscisz’s second tally came early in the second half when he snuck a low burner past Ernst at the 13:07 mark to give Conn. College the 3-2 lead. The Panthers had an answer, however, as Gould fed a pass to Captain Sean Carroll ’16, who smoothly finished to end yet another quarter with the game all knotted up.
Both teams continued to play tight defense in the fourth quarter as neither side could break the tie until Henry Riehl ’18 found a pocket of space at the 8:24 mark and converted on a Parker Lawlor ’18 pass.
The Camels responded quickly with 6:26 left in the game as Thompson assisted a PJ Kelleher goal. At the 5:44 mark the Riehl-Lawlor connection produced what would be the game winner as Riehl’s second goal of the day put the Panthers up 5-4 heading into the final minutes of play.
At a crucial and potentially deadly point with 4:40 remaining the Panthers found themselves man-down for one minute. Ernst came up huge with two saves on Kelleher on back-to-back point-blank opportunities only to make a third on Mscisz, following a timeout from the Camels.
After a high shot with 10 seconds left and an ensuing Middlebury timeout, Conn. College found themselves in an opportunity to win the game with a good look at the net. Unfortunately for the Camels, as was the case all afternoon, that also meant a good look at Ernst who yet again came up big for the Panthers and stopped a Derek Bertolini shot as time expired.
Senior Captain Jon Broome ’16 was happy to start the season on the right foot but he was far from satisfied.
“The first few games of the season are always interesting because every team is still trying to figure out what works, schematically and personnel-wise. Our defense played well and our offense generated some good looks, but we still have plenty of room for improvement,” Broome said.
Riehl, with two goals, Gould, with a goal and an assist and Lawlor, with two assists, led the Panther offense on the day. On the other side of the ball seven different Panthers caused turnovers. Middlebury held a 31-30 edge in shots, while Conn. College won the groundball battle by a margin of 23-16. The Panthers cleared 12-16 opportunities, while the Camels went 15-23.
On Tuesday, Middlebury defeated Endicott 16-10. Carroll led the Panthers with five goals, while Broome scored twice and assisted on four goals.
The Panthers will take on Tufts, the defending national champions, at home on Saturday, March 12 at 2 p.m.
(05/06/15 12:38pm)
After exacting revenge against a sound Williams team in the quarterfinal round of the NESCAC tournament on Saturday, April 25, the Middlebury men’s lacrosse team was demolished by the Jumbos of perennial powerhouse and NESCAC rival Tufts University in the conference semifinals on Saturday, May 2.
Though Tufts was only the second seed in the tournament after an 8-2 regular season — considered a disappointment due to the high precedent their last few seasons have created — the reigning national champions took their play to a whole new level against the tenth-ranked Panthers, ultimately walking away with a 23-9 win.
Tufts came out of the box clearly ready to play, as four different Jumbos scored to open the contest following Connor Helfrich’s opening faceoff win and subsequent drive to the cage in the game’s first 11 seconds. Middlebury responded with a two goal run of its own, one each from workhorse Jon Broome ’16 and dynamic senior Joel Blockowicz ’15, to trim the early lead to two.
Though this trend of trading blows has worked in Middlebury’s favor in the past, Tufts was simply the better team on the day and refused to cede any more of the lead. In response, Tufts outdid their own incredible opening run by scoring the game’s next six goals.
Again tearing down trends that have dominated Middlebury’s entire season, Tufts refused to allow halftime adjustments to stop their relentless flow. After the two sides traded goals to open the third quarter, with one each coming from Tufts’ John Uppgren and Middlebury’s Henry Riehl ’18 in the first five minutes of the half, the Jumbos went on yet another back breaking run, this time to the tune of four straight.
Though Middlebury’s Kyle Soroka ’16 stopped the bleeding with a goal to end the third quarter, Tufts scored three more in the fourth. Due in large part to fantastic goalie play from Tufts’ Alex Salazar, who made 13 saves on the day, the Panthers were held to single digits for the first time since April 11 at Bates.
All in all Tufts was able to dominate Middlebury in every relevant statistical category. The Jumbos outshot the Panthers 57-46, controlled 19 of 35 faceoffs and held an 11-19 advantage in turnovers.
In other news, four Panthers earned All-NESCAC honors when the all-conference squads were announced on Thursday, April 30. Senior Cal Williams ’15 and sophomore Joey Zelkowitz ’17 were both first-team selections, while Broome and Blockowicz earned spots on the second team.
Despite the overwhelming loss to Tufts, the Panthers were one of four NESCAC teams selected to the upcoming NCAA tournament when the seeds were announced on Sunday, May 3. It is the program’s first national tournament bid since 2011, the year before the current senior class arrived on campus.
(04/29/15 6:35pm)
The third-seeded Middlebury men’s lacrosse team fended off a strong sixth-seeded Williams side in a NESCAC quarterfinal game on Youngman Field at Alumni Stadium on Saturday, April 25. Not only did the victory mean that the Panthers’ season would continue into the semi-final round — a matchup with second-seeded Tufts at Amherst on Saturday, May 2 — but it means the squad successfully exacted revenge on a Williams team that had handed them a loss to end the regular season only three days before.
After each side scored to open the game, Middlebury went on a four-goal run started by Cal Williams ’15, who, after losing defenders with quick cuts in the heart of the Williams defense, tossed in a backhanded shot at 7:47. Naturally, however, the Ephs refused to go down easily and ended the quarter with a two-goal run of their own, the second of which came from attackman Steven Kiesel — who would go on to score seven on the day for the visitors — with a mere 13 seconds left to play.
Middlebury answered right back to start the second quarter when Sean Carroll ’16 converted in a man-up situation at 9:32 — a trend that has not always held true for the Panthers — off a Joel Blockowitz ’15 pass. Yet again the Ephs, led by Kiesel and his first half hat trick, answered right back with two more to close the quarter and set the score line at 6-5 in favor of the Panthers at halftime.
Just as the game had started, the second half began with the two sides scoring one apiece until Middlebury began to pull away, this time to the tune of three unanswered goals.
After a Jack Rautiola ’16 goal, Jack Cleary ’16 shook the defense by dodging left, something he rarely does. After Carroll’s second on the day, the Panthers held a comfortable four-goal lead that would last for mere minutes. Williams answered with a trio of their own — marked by another from the unstoppable Kiesel at 4:44 after a sloppy Panther turnover in their own zone — and one more from the senior, this time a simple dump-in on the crease with 22 seconds left, to end the quarter at 10-9 Middlebury.
In almost expected fashion, the historic NESCAC rivals yet again traded goals to open the final stanza. Kyle Soroka ’16 put the home side up by two at 14:06 until the answer at 11:52, a feed from behind the net finished by Eph Eric Kelley cut the lead right back down to one.
Following the goal, the imposing John Jackson ’18 — who earned NESCAC Player of the Week honors after two stellar games against the Ephs — stepped up for the Panthers to win yet another faceoff and groundball. On the day Jackson set career highs in each category by winning 27 of 30 faces for a ridiculous 90 percent success rate and scooped up an equally phenomenal 20 ground balls.
After Jackson took it all the way to score, Middlebury followed with two more as Henry Riehl ’18 cooly cleaned up a rebound at 10:30 and defenseman Eric Rogers ’18 scored his first career goal, one that would prove to be the decisive mark, off of a Jon Broome ’16 feed with 7:01 left in the game.
Yet again, the stubborn visitors answered with a three-goal run highlighted by Kiesel’s seventh with 1:56 left to keep the game close at 14-13. In the final minute of the game it was goalie Will Ernst’s ’16 turn to step up as Williams sprung Kiesel open for a clear mid-range look off a set play. After Ernst made the crucial save with only 30 seconds left, the Panthers were finally able to kill the clock and advance to the semis.
Middlebury advances to play Tufts in the semifinal round of the conference tournament. The Panthers fell 17-10 to the Jumbos in their season opener way back on Feb. 28. Since then, the Tufts squad — after winning the national championship a year ago — has fallen slightly in the national rankings after losing to both Bates and top-seeded Amherst during the regular season. The Jumbos were 15-12 winners over seventh-seeded Hamilton in another quarterfinal matchup.
(04/22/15 1:52pm)
The ninth-ranked Middlebury men’s lacrosse team picked up its seventh NESCAC win with a victory against Trinity at home on Saturday, April 18. With the bounce-back victory, the Panthers moved to 11-3 overall and 7-2 in the league remaining tied for the second spot with sixth-ranked Tufts and trailing only the 8-1 Lord Jeffs. Trinity fell to 2-7 in the league following the loss.
After a disappointing defeat at the hands of the Bates Bobcats a week prior, the squad knew this game was a big one. With only two regular season games left, both of which are in the league, the Panthers knew this was a virtual must-win if they wanted to stay on pace with Tufts and Amherst near the top of the NESCAC. As a result of that pesky parity which seems to exist in the NESCAC year-in and year-out, however, this was by no means an easy win despite Trinity’s poor record on the year. After a 1-1 start to the game, Middlebury was given a gift by the Bantams in the form of a rare three extra-man possession at 8:02 of the first quarter. Jon Broome ’16, a man Middlebury has come to rely on for big goals in big moments, capitalized off a Joel Blockowicz ’15 assist. Though James O’Connell put in Trinity’s second goal little more than a minute little later, Chase Clymer ’15 put Midd up to end the half. The second half was an all-Middlebury affair as the Panthers dumped in three, including two from Jack Rautiola ’16 and two assists from Henry Riehl ’18. In the same stanza, the squad shut out the visiting Bantams thus providing a 6-2 half-time lead.
Though that complete defensive dominance subsided in the third quarter and Trinity managed to score two, the Panthers offense stayed right on par and matched the effort thus maintaining the four goal lead. In similar fashion to the early going, O’Connell scored to start the fourth off a Ben Preston assist at the 11:49 mark which seemed to spark a fire in the Middlebury men. They countered with a three-goal run, the end of which saw Broome’s second on the day at 7:36. Trinity refused to let the six-goal deficit discourage them, however, and answered with a two-goal run of their own in a matter of two minutes. The final six minutes were perhaps the most exciting of the game as each side dumped in four. Rautiola pumped in his third on the day to earn the hat trick while Trinity’s Matthew Hauck had two in the closing minutes to try to keep it close. His efforts would ultimately turn out to be fruitless as the game ended the same way the half had started - with Middlebury up four.
The Panthers will play their final regular season game of the year as they travel to Williams on Wednesday, April 22 to face the faltering 8-5 Ephs. As the standings sit right now, the squad holds the third-seed in the NESCAC tournament, which will begin Saturday, April 25.
(04/15/15 4:07pm)
The most recent winning streak of the Middlebury men’s lacrosse team came to an end on the afternoon of Saturday, April 11 with a road loss to a hot Bates team, who improved to 8-4 overall and 5-4 in the NESCAC following the win. With the loss the Panthers fall to 10-3 overall and 6-2 in NESCAC play, yet remain in the national top ten with a current ranking at number nine.
Fresh off an unexpected 12-8 victory against then top-ranked Tufts on Tuesday, April 7, the Bobcats came out with intensity on both sides of the ball. The first quarter turned out to be a push as both sides dumped in two, with the Bobcats opening up the game with an Andrew Melvin goal from a Charlie Hildebrand assist at 8:41 to go along with an unassisted Charlie Fay score to end the quarter.Middlebury saw goals from Cedric Rhodes ’17 on a 4:48 man-up assist from Henry Riehl ’18 as well as an unassisted effort by Tim Giarrusso ’16.
As the second quarter began, however, it became increasingly clear that the day simply belonged to Bates. Their stifling defense allowed only one Middlebury goal in the entire quarter, which came on another unassisted effort by Giarrusso who seemed to be one of the few Panthers playing at his highest level. In the same quarter the Bobcats pumped in four as Fay, an unstoppable force for the Bates’ attack, had three of his own to put him at four on the day by halftime to go along with Jack Strain’s quarter-opener at 9:29. At the half the contest sat at 6-3 in favor of the home side.
Unfortunately for the Panthers, Bates refused to become complacent with the halftime lead and instead came out just as hungry as they had in the previous quarter. Yet again their defense was able to shut down the Middlebury attack unit, which could only manage to add two goals in the quarter, one coming off an unassisted effort by Jon Broome ’16 and a second in the same fashion by Kyle Soroka ’16, who attempted to salvage some positives from the quarter with just 12 seconds left. The opposition had by far the most prolific quarter of the day on the other side of the field as the Bobcats scored seven in the quarter. This time the attack was led by Melvin, who with a goal and an assist in the quarter moved to five points on the day, and Kyle Weber, who scored three in a row starting at 9:27.
Though the final quarter was the Panthers’ best, marked by two opening goals from Broome to give him a hat trick for the game and a third by Jack Cleary ’16, it simply was not enough to overcome the 13-5 lead the Bobcats had built by the end of the third quarter. With yet another Melvin goal at 4:20 and a garbage time score from Sean Carroll ’16 at 1:57, Bates ultimately took the game, their first win over Middlebury in 28 contests, by a score of 14-9.
The Panthers will look to rebound and get back to their winning ways on Saturday, April 18 with a big home NECAC game against 4-8 Trinity who will be seeking only their third league win of the year. Yet, with only two regular season games left for the Panthers, the squad knows this is a big one.
(04/08/15 10:55pm)
Over spring break the Middlebury men’s lacrosse team traveled to Baltimore to play the second-ranked Rochester Institute of Technology at Homewood Field, the home of the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays. Though the trip was ultimately an unsuccessful one, resulting in a 21-11 defeat to end the Panthers’ six game winning streak, it marked only the second loss of the season. with the first coming at the hands of first-ranked Tufts.
The then 13th ranked Panthers were dominated in the game, as the Tigers won both the shot battle and the ground ball fight while successfully clearing at a phenomenal 80 percent rate. Though this marks the first win for RIT over Middlebury in three games in the all-time series between the two schools, it was no fluke, as it marked RIT’s 32nd consecutive victory.
The team, however, seemed to use the sting of defeat to forge a new level of motivation. In a quick three day turnaround the Panthers traveled to play Amherst on Saturday, March 28 where a NESCAC bout, against yet another nationally ranked top 10 team, proved to be the perfect scenario for a bounce back statement.
After sitting at a 4-4 tie with the 5th ranked team in the nation following the first quarter, the Panthers stepped on the gas pedal and never looked back. Led by Jon Broome ’16 and his astounding four goal, four assist effort, the team maintained the lead after Henry Riehl ’18 scored at the 13:34 mark of the second quarter. The Panthers would ultimately stomp their NESCAC rival by a 17-11 margin and in so doing hand Amherst its first loss of the year while taking over second place in the league.
Returning home to play Hamilton on Wednesday, April 1, the team did not resort to complacency and retained their coveted spot near the top of the NESCAC. After going down 6-2 at halftime, the Continentals, in rather typical hard-nosed NESCAC fashion, refused to go away easily and stormed back with three goals in the third quarter while shutting out the Panthers.
Hamilton continued to play very solid defense in the fourth quarter, requiring just as much grit and hustle, two aspects embodied by face-off specialist John Jackson ’18 who won 11 face-offs while scooping up five ground balls on the day. The Panthers also exhibited their skill in the offensive end, led by Riehl and Jack Cleary ’16, who had three and two goal games respectively. The Panthers ultimately came out on top by 11-8, retaining their number seven national ranking and second place in the league.
With a horde of fanatical parents packing the stands of Alumni Stadium on Saturday, April 4, seventh-seeded Middlebury took on the Colby Mules to try to improve upon its winning streak. Though Colby sits near the bottom of the NESCAC, no one considers the Mules a pushover.
Both teams got out to a hot start, pouring in five goals apiece in the opening quarter. The trend continued into the second quarter as Middlebury, led by Tim Giarrusso ’16 who earned his third point on the day after an assist to Joel Blockowicz ’15 at the 11:16 mark, dumped in three more to Colby’s lone goal to take an 8-7 lead heading into halftime. The Mules responded right away to open the second half with three straight goals, building its largest lead at 10-8 with 10:34 remaining.
The Panthers responded with three of their own: one notched by David Murray ’15 and another by Joey Zelkowitz ’17. Broome added his second of the day to round out the scoring and produce the seventh lead change of the game. Colby’s Kevin Seiler tied the contest up at 11-11 late in third, however, the Panthers took over yet again to end the quarter as Broome earned his hat trick at with under a minute remaining followed by Zelkowitz who netted his second goal of the game with a mere 18 seconds remaining. After a relatively slowly fourth quarter marked by a goal for each side, the Panthers won by a score of 14-11.
Following the victory Middlebury improved to 9-2 on the season and 6-1 in NESCAC play. The Panthers return to action at home on Wednesday, April 8th when they attempt to win their fourth in a row against the 4-6 Springfield College Pride in a non-conference matchup.
(03/19/15 3:02am)
The Middlebury men’s lacrosse team extended its winning streak to five games last Saturday, March 14 with a convincing 11-9 victory against Wesleyan and an upset win over Endicott on Tuesday, March 17.
Instead of surviving early blows and relying on half-time adjustments to come out with a victory, as had seemingly become the norm, Middlebury stepped on the gas pedal early and never looked back.
The Panthers came out flying as they got up to a quick 2-0 lead in the first quarter following goals from Joel Blockowicz ’15, a beautifully bounced shot off a Tim Giarrusso ’16 assist, and Jack Cleary ’16. Yet the Panther defense failed to completely stifle the potent Wesleyan offense, which scored 13 goals against fourth-ranked Union College just three days earlier, as Cardinal Lyle Mitchell pumped in a goal in the closing minutes from a Matt Prezioso assist.
In the second quarter Middlebury continued to dominate early and often. The quarter again opened with the Panther offense taking it to Wesleyan. Blockowicz and Giarrusso each doubled their point totals on the day with a goal apiece, both unassisted. Though Wesleyan managed to stop the bleeding with a Niall Devaney goal at 4:14, Midd would simply not be stopped. Less than a minute later at 3:20 Sean Carroll ’16 scored his second of the year off a David Murray ’15 assist to give the Middlebury squad a 5-2 half-time lead.
Though Murray continued his strong play with a couple of nice fakes ultimately culminating in a goal to start the third, Wesleyan refused to be blown out. First-year Cardinal attackman Harry Stanton responded with two goals little more than a minute apart to pull Wesleyan back to within two. To end the quarter, however, Middlebury broke many a Wesleyan heart as Kyle Soroka ’16 capitalized on a Henry Riehl ’18 pass to convert on the man-up opportunity with only eight seconds left in the quarter.
Though Wesleyan would go on to score five in the final quarter, the last two came in garbage time when the game was far from their reach thanks primarily to an unprecedented single quarter hat trick from attack man Jack Rautiola ’16, who received assists from three different Panther teammates. One of these teammate was first-year faceoff sensation John Jackson ’18, who pulled off a tremendous 19-24 day at the faceoff x. This 79 percent mark in faceoffs was a key factor in pushing the Panthers to a conference win.
On Tuesday, The Panthers beat eighth-ranked Endicott 11-10. The game started off very even with both sides scoring two in the first quarter, however, Endicott surged ahead. The Panthers, however, are by no means strangers to fighting back from behind as two of their five victories on the year have come in such fashion. As such, the squad answered right back with four straight goals from four different scorers tying the game up before the Gulls dumped one more in at 1:19 to end the half with a 7-6 lead.
The third quarter proved to be more of the same with an early Endicott charge and an on par Middlebury response led by Giarrusso, who had a hat-trick on the day. Rautiola notched the game-winner with 3:26 to play and despite the Gulls’ attempts, the Panthers were able to maintain the narrow lead.
The team returns to action this Saturday when they face Bowdoin at home.
(03/11/15 1:42am)
The Middlebury men’s lacrosse team earned its first NESCAC victory of the season with a 13-9 win at Connecticut College on Saturday, March 7.
After surviving a strong early push from the Camels, which involved a four-goal first quarter, the Panthers went on a tear in the second half that included a 6-0 run, eventually leading to the 13-9 win.
With the defeat Conn. College pick up their first conference loss of the season as their season record drops to 0-3. In so doing the Middlebury squad won their second consecutive game and improved to 2-1 on the season, and 1-1 in conference play.
Early in the game Conn. College’s Tucker Mscisz ’18 made a large impact, scoring the first two goals of the contest unassisted. Additionally, Ross Thompson ’17 recorded a goal and an assist in the game’s early stages to power the Camel offense. Leads, however, are not built exclusively on the offensive end.
In the first half, the Camels played a stifling zone defense which gave the Middlebury offense significant problems. Conn. also demonstrated stellar play between the pipes throughout the first half, which contributed to Middlebury’s struggle to find the back of the net. Middlebury had the last scoring chance of the half, but Conn. goaltender Bobby Bleistein ’16 made a terrific stick save in response to a Jon Broome ’16 shot from point blank range, allowing the Camels to enter the halftime break with a 6-4 advantage.
The second half, however, was an entirely different story as Panthers on both ends of the field steadily began to exert influence and take control of the game.
To start the third quarter Jack Rautiola ’16 continued his solid play with a goal assisted by senior Joel Blockowicz ’15, who would ultimately lead the Panther offense with six points on the day. In his first career start sophomore attackman Nate Smith-Ide ’17 notched two goals and two assists in the second half. Smith Ide’s contribution was certainly vital to the squad’s ability to play from a deficit and regain the advantage.
Just as Conn. College exhibited strong defensive play in the first half, the Panthers stepped up defensively in the second half to shift the narrative of the game.
After allowing six first-half goals, the defense tightened up to let in only three after the halftime break. When asked about this dramatic shift, defenseman Eric Rogers ’18 talked about an overall shift in the team’s mentality. According to Rogers the defense simply “started winning individual matchups” while the offense “maintained more possession due in large part to more faceoff wins.” The freshman defender also gave credit to Middlebury goaltender Will Ernst ’17, who solidified the Panther backline with 14 saves on the day.
The team extended their winning streak to three games on Tuesday, March 10 with a 13-11 victory over St. Lawrence University. Mid-week games are never easy, especially when a three and a half-hour bus ride is part of the equation, however, the Panthers were up to the task against a solid Saints squad who had won two of their last three matchups. In so doing, Middlebury avenged last year’s 14-7 loss with a 13-11 victory. Though not a NESCAC matchup, St. Lawrence competes in a high-quality conference, making the win crucial to the Panthers’ momentum as they continue their season.
In what is becoming a rather adverse trend, the Panthers went down in the first half but managed to pull out the victory through a second half comeback. Though they built an early 3-1 lead with goals from Joey Zelkowitz ’17, Jack Cleary ’16, and Jack Rautiola ’16, the Saints quickly stormed back with two goals apiece from Jeremy Vautour ’16 and Tommy Hovey ’15 as well as a first half hat-trick for Conor Healy ‘17. Had it not been for Tim Giarrusso ’16 with two early second quarter goals the game could have been out of reach at the half.
In a similar fashion to their last bout with Conn. College, Middlebury tightened up defensively in the second half to shut the Saints out in the third quarter and allow only three goals in the remainder of the game. On the other side of the ball, the squad dumped in four in the third quarter, as Cleary and Rautiola both scored their second goals of the day. First-year midfielder Henry Riehl ’18 added one goal as a part of the man-up unit, and Nick Peterson ’18 also got on the board, scoring his first career goal. With another solid day in net from goaltender Will Ernst ’17 and a quality day at the face-off X for John Jackson ’18, the Panthers ultimately pulled out another win to go to 3-1 on the year.
The Panthers return to action on Saturday, March 14 when last year’s regular season NESCAC runner-up Wesleyan travels to Middlebury.