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(01/24/13 12:38am)
The third-ranked men’s basketball team improved to 15-0 on the season with a 66-47 win over Hamilton on Jan. 18. Senior captain Nolan Thompson ’13 entered the game just three points shy of 1000 for his career and wasted no time achieving the feat, knocking down his first shot attempt of the game — a corner three set up by an assist from Jake Wolfin ’13 — sparking a 12-0 Middlebury run.
“For Nolan to get 1000 — coming in with me and being one of my best friends for four years — it’s an incredible thing to see,” said Wolfin. “He’s a hard worker and he deserves it.”
Thompson finished the game with 18 points, converting seven of his 10 shot attempts, moving him into 16th-place on the program’s all-time scoring list. The Akron, Ohio native began his Middlebury career four years ago as a walk-on.
“Coach, the first week, said that a kid named Nolan Thompson would be trying out,” said Wolfin. “So we went to meet him and he was doing his crazy work out in the gym and a lot of the older guys were a little suspicious, but they realized right away that [Thompson] is a great leader and obviously has done an amazing job for this program. We were blessed to get him.”
After the Panthers jumped out to a 14-3 lead, Hamilton responded with back-to-back baskets, cutting the Middlebury lead to seven at the 10:55 mark. That was as close as the Continentals would get in the first half, however, as Thompson and Joey Kizel ’14 scored the Panthers next 11 points as the home team engineered a 10-3 run over the next 3:11 to the delight of the Pepin Gymnasium crowd.
“It’s always great playing at home where guys are comfortable in this setting,” said head coach Jeff Brown. “But all three of our starting guards shoot the three-ball very well and they play off each other so well that they get great opportunities.”
“Just starting off with [Kizel] and [Thompson] making three or four shots each in the first couple of minutes, those guys are so talented offensively and they work so hard on their shot in practice it’s clear that those are going to go in,” Wolfin said. “We’re all willing to move the ball and we know when someone’s hot.”
Though the Panthers led 27-13 at the 7:06 mark of the first half, the team made just one field goal down the stretch, missing six of seven attempts from the floor and went into the half up 32-22.
“It’s been something that’s been a little frustrating for us, being down at half[time] and really starting off games slowly,” Brown said. “We got a lot of stops early, we were clicking offensively and that early blast gave us a little bit of cushion.”
After a Thompson three extended Middlebury’s lead to 13 to open the second half, the Continentals went on a 7-0 run of their own including five straight points from forward Peter Kazickas to cut the Panther lead to six. The hosts re-doubled their lead over the next 7:11 as Thompson and sophomore Hunter Merryman ’15 combined to score 12 consecutive points for the Panthers. Merryman provided needed scoring off the bench, as the sharpshooter from San Marino, Calif. contributed 13 points in 17 minutes, including 11 in the second half. Wolfin, meanwhile, assisted or made eight of nine Middlebury baskets over a 7:50 stretch during which the Panthers extended their lead to 19 and sealed their fifth conference win of the season.
“Coming out in the first five minutes is so important for us in the second half and not starting slow,” Wolfin said. “We started fast in the first half for the first time in a while so [I came] out looking to get to the basket a little bit. With a couple of their guards I had a strength advantage going inside and trying to finish, so I tried to put a little pressure on them and then kick the [ball] out to [Merryman] or [Thompson].”
While the Panthers scored 15 points fewer than their season average, the nation’s third-ranked team held Hamilton to just 47 points — the fewest Middlebury has allowed to a NESCAC regular season opponent since the 1999-2000 season.
“When we play defense like that we’re tough to beat,” Wolfin said. “It was a full team effort. Jack [Roberts ’14] was great protecting the rim and [Thompson] did a great job on [Hamilton’s] stud freshman [Matt Hart] — he’s a great player. We paid attention to the scout[ing report] and did a really good job on help [defense].”
The Continentals shot just 35 percent from the floor while turning the ball over 16 times. Roberts created havoc inside, blocking four shots and altering numerous more as Hamilton’s trio of frontcourt starters combined to score just 12 points while shooting four of 19 from the floor.
“[Roberts] has picked up [his defensive play],” said Brown. “That’s really his calling card with this team — to make a contribution guarding the other team’s big player. We don’t give [him] a lot of help, but he’s really long and he’s got good timing and he’s able to change some shots on the interior and block some shots.”
Roberts and the Panthers will have their hands full this week as Middlebury travels to Williamstown, Mass. Saturday, Jan. 26 for a matchup of top-10 teams nationally with considerable NESCAC implications. Roberts will have the task of stopping Williams star, big man Michael Mayer who enters the game fourth in the conference in scoring and second in rebounding.
“For our young student-athletes to have an opportunity to play a ranked team in their gym in our conference in a game that is a battle for sole possession perhaps of first place in our league is really exciting,” Brown said. “I know it’s going to be a packed house and there’s going to be a lot of excitement and enthusiasm and I think our guys will be up for the challenge.”
Middlebury downed Williams twice last season, once in the regular season and again in the NESCAC semifinals.
(01/23/13 11:43pm)
Despite going 1-1 on the weekend and boasting an improved record of 9-8, the Middlebury women’s basketball team found itself stunned by a last-second NESCAC loss. The Panthers were shocked by a late surge from Hamilton, who lost its third game in conference play on Friday, Jan. 18. Two days later, on Sunday, Jan. 20, the team rebounded from the loss by handling Albany Pharmacy with a score of 75-28.
The Panthers started the game in control against the Continentals, leading Hamilton 13-7 at the 11:35 mark after three-pointers from Sarah Marcus ’14 and Laura Lowry ’14. Hamilton came back to tie the game with 3:03 remaining in the first, however, bringing the score to 22-22. After a pair of Middlebury free throws with 0.1 seconds left in the first half, the teams went into the break with 26 points each.
Middlebury came out of the break strong, going on an 8-0 run including two buckets from Marcus and a three-point play from Tracy Borsinger ’13 to take the lead with 11:48 remaining. The Panthers continued to hold an advantage late into the contest, with the score at 52-44 with 1:19 remaining.
Eliza Howe led an improbable Continentals comeback, sinking two three-pointers and a free throw to bring the Continentals within two points with 38 seconds remaining. Despite Scarlett Kirk ’14 making two free throws after being fouled with 10 seconds left to seemingly ice the victory, Middlebury could not hold on to the win.
Hamilton guard Madie Harlem hit a three-pointer with 3.3 seconds to go to put the Continentals within one. Kim Goidell then stole an inbound pass and outletted it to forward Samantha Graber, who converted a lay-up with 0.7 seconds on the clock, sealing a one-point victory over Middlebury with five points in the game’s final moments.
Lowry led Middlebury with 14 points while Middlebury connected on 42.9 percent of shots from the floor. Kirk and Borsinger both claimed six rebounds.
Head coach Noreen Pecsok accepted that tough losses like the one against Hamilton come with playing basketball.
“I told our team ‘If you do this long enough, you are bound to experience something like we experienced [that] night,” she said. “You have to be willing to have the tough, sometimes painful experiences to have a chance at the thrilling ones.”
In a repeat of last weekend’s fortune, Middlebury was able to bounce back from a tough loss with a commanding win against Albany Pharmacy. Despite a slow start by both teams, Jesse Miller ’13 opened the scoring after a double rebound by Katie Pett ’14.
Middlebury was easily able to work the perimeter and penetrate a weak 2-3 zone. The Panthers especially benefitted from offensive rebounds, getting points off second shots.
A seven-point run from Kate Logan ’13, including a three and points off a steal, epitomised Middlebury’s offensive and defensive prowess. The Panthers went into the break with a 33-21 advantage after back to back threes from Borsinger.
Middlebury came out even stronger in the second half, as Albany Pharmacy failed to gain any momentum. The Panthers held their opponents to three points in 10 minutes, not to mention seven points in the entire half.
The game provided Middlebury an opportunity to incorporate new players and experiment with different partnerships, as Alex Coolidge ’15, Daisy Brown ’16 and Margaret Lindon ’14 all recorded points. In fact, 11 of 12 Middlebury players got on the score sheet.
Borsinger nearly outscored the entire Albany Pharmacy team, netting 24 points in 26 minutes of play.
Now halfway through its NESCAC schedule, Pecsok is taking one game at a time.
“As coaches we will take a look at things we might want to do better,” said Pecsok. “The team will just focus on the things we have focused on all year – getting better, playing for each other and competing in every situation.”
(01/22/13 11:59pm)
Following Sunday evening's discussion on divestment by Schumann Distinguished Scholar Bill McKibben, the Campus Current is back with another liveblog from McCullough Social Space, starting at 7:30 p.m. Tonight will feature a "wide-ranging panel [discussing] the ongoing debate over whether environmental and social concerns should influence investment policies of college and university endowments." The panel will include Charlie Arnowitz ’13, Ralph Earle, Alice Handy, Mark Kritzman, Vice President for Finance Patrick Norton, and McKibben. The event will be moderated by David Salem '78. Additional information on the panelists is available on a website devoted to the discussion.
According to the press release, "It will focus on two questions: what factors should the college’s board of trustees consider in determining whether to place restrictions on how Middlebury’s endowment is invested, and what are the advantages and disadvantages of using divestment as a means of addressing climate-related concerns?"
The Campus Current will provide a liveblog below, but a live stream is also available online. Additionally, the Campus will be providing detailed analysis of the panel in Thursday's issue.
With Additional Reporting and Photography by KATHRYN DESUTTER and CHARLOTTE GARDINER
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9:33 - Salem thanks the audience, and smooth jazz begins playing as the audience continue the discussion amongst one another. Signing off from the McCullough Social Space. Thanks for reading!
9:32 - Salem concludes the panel, reminding the audience that he has done his best to maintain neutrality. Salem admits that he has heard things that “don’t ring true to me.” He encourages audience members to use the website to continue to investigate the facts.
9:30 - As McKibben speaks, there is snapping in agreement from the audience. Salem gives Earle the final word, who confirms McKibben’s assertion the investment field “is an exercise in masochism.” He continues, “The missing piece — not just in the US, but globally — is government [action] against climate change.” McKibben then jumps in and confirms the need for action at the governmental level.
9:28 - McKibben continues, “There is no $420 million cost at stake here. We’ve found out tonight that less than 1% of our endowment is invested in the top 200 companies we’re targeting here.” Handy interrupts and asks McKibben to remember that due to the commingled investment, more than just Middlebury’s 1%, or $9 million dollars, is at stake. After a brief interjection from Kritzman to support Handy’s argument, McKibben again takes the mic to quote the “Middlebury Divestment Reader” that was distributed by student volunteers at the start of the forum, and available for download below.
9:24 - A student asks what solutions would be more effective than divestment, and if it’s feasible for Middlebury to spend the amount currently invested in fossil fuels and arms manufacturers “directly on its values.” Kritzman fields the question: “I apologize for trying to interject some of the science and rationality into the conversation.” He continues by elaborating based on the historical example of tobacco.
9:20 - This is followed by a request for Handy and McKibben to address the differentiation between divesting from fossil fuel companies and arms manufacturers. McKibben begins by thanking Liebowitz for providing numbers on the College’s endowment and highlighting that less than 1% of our endowment is invested in arms manufacturers, and in combination with investment in fossil fuels, the amount in question remains less than 5%. Handy emphasizes that investment is in commingled managers, which presents broader implications of the issue before McKibben injects that there are other places to find $900 million. "That's the beautiful thing about Capitalism."
9:17 - Another student then asks Norton about the potential effect of divestment on need-blind admissions. Norton echoes Kritzman’s findings that the loss that would come as a result of SRI would have a “devastating” impact on the College from a long-term perspective.
9:15 - Teddy Smith '15 askes Handy if she would be willing to work with students to better understand the endowment. Handy’s reply is short: “Absolutely.”
9:14 - "That was about three and a half minutes," Salem says before moving onto the next question.
9:13 - Jay Saper ’13 asks the panelists and the audience to recognize that those most affected by climate change and violence are not present. Saper walks along the first row of chairs, naming parties and individuals not present — ranging from the Palestinian people to a student from Sandy Hook elementary — and highlights their absence at the forum. "There is a cost to death. The cost is unimaginable."
9:11 - Fernando Sandoval Jimenez '15 asks how many clients need to support a move to SRI in order to enact the policy completely? Handy responds by saying it would take an agreement by all clients.
9:07 - Earle responds first and confirms Kagan’s assertion of the risk of opportunity cost. According to Earle, if divestment turns out to be an ineffective strategy, then there is an enormous opportunity cost of the money and energy expended on divestment campaigns. McKibben follows Earle, stating: "It's by no means a silver bullet, it's one thing we need to do!" McKibben, citing Professor of Economics Jon Isham’s research, laments the lack of a price on carbon to motivate investors.
9:00 - Max Kagan ’14 directs a question toward McKibben and Earle, asking about potential downsides to divestment, primarily within the framework of opportunity costs and the historical record of divestment in the tobacco industry, Sudan and South Africa. He released an op-ed in the Campus with similar points in November.
8:59 - Salem then solicits questions from the audience and requests that the questions be limited to approximately one minute. He also encourages audience members to consult online College materials for answers, and also to share remaining questions on the forum’s website.
8:57 - Kritzman then presses McKibben for the “scientific outcomes” of divestment. McKibben again uses the historical anecdote of South Africa to draw a parallel.
8:54 - Salem quiets the audience before moving the panel onto questions, which will be posed among one another before being posed by the audience. For the first question, Arnowitz presses Handy to elaborate on the aforementioned “creative solutions” that Investure could employ in a divestment strategy. When Handy answers in somewhat vague terms about Investure’s model, Arnowitz presses for specific solutions. Handy’s response: “I don’t have an answer for that.”
8:52 -"It's hard to imagine how we could live with ourselves otherwise," he concludes. McKibben receives a standing ovation by approximately one-third of the audience. A letter from Steyer is distributed to members of the audience.
8:51 - McKibben, in citing personal friend Tom Steyer, manager of a hedge fund of over $20 billion, argues that “this [divestment] can be done, is a good investment strategy, and that divestment is a way to make yourselves heard."
8:47 - McKibben emphasizes that “endowment return is not the only financial indicator to worry about” when considering the funding source of the College. McKibben cites donations as one of several other sources of revenue. He continues in discussing his pride in the College’s pledge to carbon neutrality, but argues that “it makes no sense to green the campus without also greening the portfolio.”
8:44 - "My car gets more than 50 mpg, and the Arctic melted last summer.”
8:42 - “Our hope is not that we can bankrupt Exxon … but we do believe that history shows that divestment can change the course!” McKibben cites the liberation of South Africa, which fell victim to a strong divestment movement in the 1980s, and eventually repealed apartheid.
8:41 - McKibben reiterates many of his points from Sunday evening: “These industries are different — the flaw is the business plan.” A few students snap throughout the many of McKibben's remarks.
8:40 - McKibben proposes that the College pledge, in the course of the spring semester, not to invest new money in fossil fuel companies, and over the next five years, taper the investment to zero. He proposes that the same policy be adopted for arms manufacturers. McKibben acknowledges Norton’s reference to “inter-generational equity” and explains his view that it is “morally wrong” to invest in companies whose missions “ensure that students will not have a planet” to inherit.
8:37 - McKibben begins by explaining that he is nervous. When he remarks about his own “low net worth,” several members of the audience chuckle and snap. McKibben then thanks Arnowitz, to more applause, before requesting that the audience not applaud or interrupt so he can remain within his time limit.
8:35 - Salem now introduces McKibben, the sixth and final panelist. He challenges McKibben to propose a process that the board of trustees could employ if the board chose to embrace divestment.
8:34 - Earle concludes by urging critical thinking. “This is a multi-generational problem that will not be solved overnight,” says Earle.
8:33 - Earle then proposes steps that colleges and universities might take: 1) Encourage proxy voting that would require environmental expertise on the board of energy companies. Earle warns, “you [currently] can’t vote if you’re not a shareholder.” 2) Encourage collaborative research and use of resources to develop sustainable technologies. 3) “What can students do?” He suggests a pledge to never buy a vehicle that consumes less than 50 mpg. He then suggests that students shift their own consumption from coal to renewables. “Find out how your utility generates electricity. If it’s from coal — fire them!”
8:30 - 'It’s my view that the entire fossil fuel industry is too large a target, and I advocate a more specific strategy directed primarily at the greatest [firms] that impact climate change, namely coal.'
8:29 - Earle advocates for the use of funds toward purchasing “vast supplies of inexpensive natural gas,” which has half the warming potential of coal.
8:27 - Earle announces that he is “in complete agreement with 350.org’s goals.” However, he immediately clarifies that “I don’t think that divestiture from fossil fuel stocks will be effective in reducing climate change.” Earle cities divestment from the tobacco industry and the Sudan as not having a large impact. He further argues that the world's largest fossil fuel companies aren’t publically traded.
8:25 - Salem then introduces Ralph Earle, asking for his reactions to what he has heard thus far; in particular, he highlighting Arnowitz’s opinions of the importance of student input.
8:23 - Kritzman closes with the advice that “well-intentioned investors should measure these two approaches and decide which they believe to be most effective."
8:21 - Kritzman then shows a slide that assumes a $1 billion portfolio invested in the S&P 500, EAFE, the Developed World and the entire world over a period of 5, 10 and 20 years. A table of these factors demonstrates the cost of socially responsible investing, culminating in a $420 million loss if the $1 billion was invested worldwide over 20 years.
8:18 - "I hope you're following. I know it's hard to concentrate when it's so exciting."
8:15 - "An inarguable mathematical truth that socially responsible investment is costly." Kritzman follows his statement that “it’s pretty simple to estimate the costs,” and introduces a (very) text-heavy slide which utilizes a “Monte Carlo simulation."
8:14 - Kritzman explains the channels through which socially responsible investing has an economic impact. Socially responsible investing can raise a bad company’s cost of capital, draw attention to a "bad" company’s "bad" behavior, and in drawing attention to this company, may persuade it to reform.
8:11 - “At the outset, let me just say that I do not have a view as to whether you should restrict your investment universe or not, but I have a view that you should at least understand the consequences of these two choices when you make that decision."
8:10 - Salem then introduces Mark Kritzman, who loads a visual PowerPoint presentation to accompany his response. Kritzman explains that he will outline the cost of socially responsible investing.
8:09 - Arnowitz urges students to remember that "every student's voice is legitimate" and "not [to] demonize other community members." Rather, student must focus on "the most effective way to steer this debate." Arnowitz concludes to an enthusiastic applause.
8:07 - Arnowitz cites the SGA student survey, which has surveyed almost 50% of the student body. According to collected data, 40% of respondents thought divestment was a “very or extremely important issue.” Arnowitz cites several other stats that demonstrate student commitment to the issue of divestment. Here is the full breakdown of numbers provided by Arnowitz following the panel:
Based on the SGA’s recent survey, which as of 3:00 this afternoon had 1,031 respondents, around 45% of the student body: 63% of respondents think the College should apply the principles of socially responsible investing to its endowment. 14% are opposed and 23% have no opinion. In terms of prioritizing SRI, 28% think it’s not particularly important, 32% think it’s somewhat important, 40% think it’s very or extremely important. In terms of divestment, students favor a diversity of approaches. 38% support divestment from arms and the top 200 fossil fuel manufacturers. 10% prioritize fossil fuels. 12% prioritize arms manufacturers. So total of 60% support some kind of divestment, 15% don’t support divestment, 25% have no opinion.
8:05 - Salem introduces Arnowitz. He thanks the organizers for including a student on the panel and acknowledges that many parties affected by these decisions are not present at the forum, to which a few audience members snap in agreement. Arnowitz continues, “We insist that student views be at the table and that students’ views be taken into account.”
8:03 - Handy discusses constraints, such as the required 8 percent return (5 percent to cover spending and 3 percent to cover inflation). She then acknowledges the added pressure of Middlebury’s duty to its students, faculty and staff, as well as its desire to be “a perpetual institution.” Handy concludes, “our number one priority is to support all of our clients to work together to make the world a better place.”
7:58 - Handy states that Middlebury has about $6 million invested in explicitly sustainable companies, and another $20 million in a manager that uses ESG criteria.
7:58 - “Divestment would require a buy-in by all of our group.”
7:57 - Handy explains that Investure strives “to provide a service level comparable to that of any individually-managed investment office.” She tells the audience that “we [Investure], like everyone here, want to leave the world a better place, and believe that we can provide our clients with the resources to continue their missions.”
7:55 - Handy will speak next, discussing why Investure relies on commingled funds to meet clients’ needs, what constraints govern the management of Middlebury’s endowments, and Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria that Investure employs.
7:54 - Norton adds that his financial role is to provide for the education opportunity of both current and future Middlebury students. He concludes by asking the trustees to consider the implications of divesting from fossil fuels, as the energy companies occupy a “large portion of the investment space.”
7:51 - Norton continues in explaining that since 2005, Middlebury has contracted with Investure to manage the College’s portfolio. He states that the College decided to contract with Investure for the promise of “access to investment opportunity comparable to large endowments.”
7:50 - Norton explains that the role of the College endowment is two-fold: 1) It is used to support the education of current Middlebury students, which was $50 million for FY 2013. 2) It is used to support the education of future Middlebury students. This is done by creating future generational equity, which aims to maximize returns, with a return objective of at least 5% plus inflation to ensure preservation if not positive gain.
7:47 - Salem begins the panel by asking Norton four questions: “Why does the Colelge have an endowment? Who decides how much is spent and on what basis? Why does the College delegate to Investure? What are the key elements of Investure’s mandate to the College?”
7:45 - Salem announces that the forum will last for approximately 100 minutes. The first half will be a series of questions posed by the moderator to each panelist in turn. Each panelist will answer in approximately 5-7 minutes. The panelists are then encouraged to “cross-examine” each other.
7:44 - Salem acknowledges that the “tools of my trade [are] tedious at best and maddening at worst — including many of us that manage money for a living.” He urges the audience to “base your views on primary sources, search aggressively and endlessly for facts contrary to your evolving thesis and defend at all costs ‘the illimitable freedom of the human mind.’”
7:41 - Salem takes the podium and thanks Liebowitz, the panelists and the audience. He jokes that the recording of the forum should contain the warning, “viewer discretion advised.” Salem requests that the panelists and the audience “leave for another day the scientific challenges that lie at the heart of the global debate about climate change … to important to be taken up — yet alone resolved — by tonight’s panel.”
7:38 - Liebowitz discusses decorum, and asks that “no one does anything to interfere with anyone’s ability to see or hear this discussion.” He then welcomes the moderator, David Salem ’78.
7:36 - Liebowitz welcomes and thanks the audience for attending. He explains that this is the first of a series of discussions about divestment, an issue of “great interest and importance,” and he expresses his pleasure that “the College is taking a leadership role.” Liebowtiz cites other examples of student involvement in the creation of institutional policy, such as the establishment of study abroad sites and the retention of winter term. He mentions that “several student groups raised questions regarding Middlebury’s endowment” throughout the fall.
7:33 - McCullough has continued to fill, but there are still many open seats throughout the auditorium. All panelists are on stage, conversing. Various seats throughout the auditorium are reserved for displaced peoples, a silent protest of sorts. The crowd quiets as the panelists sit down and President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz takes the podium.
7:18 - McCullough Social Space is slowly filling up. Ushers are checking IDs at the door if you're planning on coming. Some individuals are wearing "DIVEST MIDD" shirts. Upon entering, many attendees were given a pamphlet entitled "The Middlebury Divestment Reader," compiled by 350.org.
[A Note About Liveblogs: Although we do our best to accurately present events and quotes, the instant nature of liveblogging sometimes leads to errors in our reporting. If you feel like you have been misrepresented or misquoted in our coverage above, please do not hesitate to contact the Campus.]
(01/21/13 12:15am)
The Campus Current will be liveblogging "Midd Does the Math" beginning at 7:30 p.m. from Mead Memorial Chapel. The event, which is sponsored by Divest for Our Future, will feature Schumann Distinguished Scholar Bill McKibben. Middlebury is the latest of many stops for McKibben, who traveled around the country on his Do the Math tour throughout the fall of 2012.
"Come join us for a night of education AND fun (in the true spirit of J-term)," Divest for Our Future writes. "We can promise that there will be a LOT of energy!"
The event comes only two days before Tuesday's panel on the College's endowment; the Campus will provide a subsequent liveblog at that event, beginning on Tuesday, Jan. 22 at 7:30 p.m.
With Additional Reporting and Photography by KATHRYN DESUTTER and CHARLOTTE GARDINER
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11:40 - For additional coverage and photographs from "Midd Does the Math", MiddBlog's Luke Whelan just posted about the event.
9:48 - Signing off from the Mead Memorial Chapel, but we'll be back on Tuesday evening for what will certainly be an interesting discussion. Additional coverage and analysis will be available in this Thursday's issue. Thanks for reading!
9:46 - After discussing the nature he has witnessed in each state on his Do The Math tour, McKibben stresses that community will be essential in winning this fight at Middlebury. "We will do what needs to happen ... Middlebury will show the rest of the country and the rest of the world a path forward from a very difficult place." This conclusion prompts a standing ovation from a majority of the audience.
9:41 - He continues, "When you come to get arrested, will you wear a necktie or dress?" McKibben wants to make a strong point, and remove the "radical" nature that is associated with the divestment movement. “There is nothing — and I mean nothing — radical in what we’re talking about here."
9:38 - McKibben speaks about the tools of influencing people to change through the political message sent by divestment. “Our goal is to find the other currencies — the currencies of movements, passions, experience, creativity.”
9:36 - McKibben asks students to complete the post cards, which were placed in the pews throughout Mead Chapel prior to the event. The postcards are pre-addressed to the board of trustees, and simply say "DIVEST MIDDLEBURY" on the front.
9:35 - He introduces a final video message from Jason Scores, economics professor at the Monterey Institute of International Studies. “We’re very proud that students have taken the lead to demand this change, and we’re very proud that many faculty are standing with them, too,” says Scores.
9:32 - McKibben asks for a freeze on new fossil fuel investments and to wind down existing fossil fuel investments in five years. "I think Middlebury will provide leadership." He continues, "If you’re going to green your campus you’ve got to green your portfolio."
9:30 - McKibben introduces a video from Desmond Tutu, who speaks about divestment's impact in ending South African apartheid. Tutu mentions the suffering of the African people due to climate change “even though they’ve done nothing to cause the situation.” He says, "Once again we can join together as a world and put on pressure" in solving climate change.
9:28 - "I think it would be a big mistake not to do this," Steyer concludes.
9:27 - McKibben introduces Tom Steyer, a friend and professional investo, to the stage. He speaks about his belief in climate change, and emphasizes its urgency. "We’re going to hit a nonlinear progression where things are going to get much worse, much faster," Steyer states. Steyer admits that he quit his job at the end of 2012 to become a "pain in the ass." He stresses urgency and openness: “It’s about dealing with the issue openly and confronting it. We’re actually going to have to accept the problem. I have been an investor for 30 years – I know that this will be very difficult for the institutions ... and [I know] that they can do it."
9:19 - Elder expresses gratitude to President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz for organizing Tuesday’s panel on the College’s endowment. Audience members snap in agreement. As the program approaches the 1.5 hour mark, some students begin to leave.
9:17 - Elder reflects on flipping through the physical archives of the Campus in the special collections of the Davis Family Library. “In 1978, the College faculty voted to divest from all companies involved in South Africa. And then for 8 years, nothing happened,” says Elder. He speaks about the history of the divestment campaign during the 1980s at the College. Elder describes how members of the group “Students Against Apartheid” met with the Board of Trustees, and finally, they voted to divest from South Africa in July of 1986. (Three months prior, in the Campus' annual April Fools' issue, the headline quipped that the college had divested from the South Africa; perhaps, we'll revisit the idea in this year's April Fools' issue.)
9:12 - McKibben introduces Professor Emeritus John Elder, who states that “nothing could be more important” than the ongoing discussion. McKibben drinks one of the Otter Creek beers used in the analogy described below.
9:10 - We're moving onto what the audience can do: dinvestment. McKibben explains that 'we can't avoid using a certain amount of carbon in the way our society is set up, but it is wrong to profit from it.' He makes a similar statement about assault rifles.
9:07 - McKibben sets up an active analogy between the 2 degrees Celsius limit and the 0.08 limit on Blood Alcohol Content. As students pass bottles of Otter Creek Brewery ale onto the stage, McKibben describes how he could probably drink three or four and still remain below the legal limit. “The problem is that the fossil fuel industry are absolute party animals,” says McKibben. "Even with all this beer ... the fossil fuel industry continues looking for more." Three cases of Keystone Light, with 30 cans in each, are loaded onto the stage. McKibben explains that the fossil fuel industry is analogous to the copious amount of Keystone.
9:04 - McKibben speaks in between words from a video of Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson. The crowd laughs as McKibben pokes fun at Tillerson’s claim that the effects of climate change can be softened if we “move around crop production areas.”
9:01 - "They’ve stifled every rational effort … to put a price on carbon.” McKibben describes BP’s development of the slogan “Beyond Petroleum” and their subsequent decision to sell off the sustainable divisions of the company.
8:59 - McKibben explains that major progress in renewable energy is inhibited by “the basic fact that the fossil fuel industry cheats.” While Middlebury cannot dump its trash in the middle of Rt. 125, the fossil fuel industry can "pour their waste out for free."
8:55 - The good news: "There's plenty we can do ... and it's by no means impossible." McKibben discusses recent improvements in Germany and China as great examples (i.e. solar panels and hot water heaters on top of buildings in Chinese cities). "They have exerted more political will."
8:53 - “I want you to get a sense of who your brothers and sisters are in this fight,” says McKibben. He shows pictures submitted to 350.org from citizens around the globe who have been affected by climate change. One picture shows citizens of Haiti affected by a flood holding a sign stating, “Your actions affect me." Additional photos are available on 350.org's Flickr.
8:49 - Following Klein's film, McKibben introduces another special video from Canadian indigenous activist Clayton Thomas-Muller. He praises Middlebury's efforts, but the video cuts out about midway through.
8:45 - McKibben pays tribute to author and activist Naomi Klein, who is currently working on her movement titled “Idle No More” in Canada. McKibben introduces a video recorded by Klein, a board member of 350.org, filmed specifically for "Midd Does the Math". Klein challenges students to take action: "We need you to provide a strong, coherent message. There is no doubt in my mind that others will follow."
8:40 - McKibben introduces three numbers: 2°C, 565 gigatons of carbon and 2795 gigatons of coal, oil and gas. Do the Math provides explanation: "We can burn less than 565 more gigatons of carbon dioxide and stay below 2°C of warming — anything more than that risks catastrophe for life on earth. The only problem? Fossil fuel corporations now have 2,795 gigatons in their reserves, five times the safe amount. And they’re planning to burn it all — unless we rise up to stop them." McKibben continues in saying, "These companies are a road force. They're outlaws against the laws of physics. If they carry out their business plan, the planet tanks."
8:37 - “What we have to talk about tonight is how to keep things from getting totally out of control. All we’re talking about tonight is avoiding calamity — complete calamity.”
8:35 - "You guys are on the front lines ... so let's get to work." McKibben mentions his popular article from Rolling Stone, which gained ten times more likes on Facebook than an article about "hot, ready and legal" Justin Bieber from the same issue. He jokes that it may have been due to his own "soulful stare."
8:33 - McKibben continues by showing photos of community members arrested during the aforementioned protests in Washington D.C. In an adjoining cell block was 72-year-old Gus Speth; McKibben recalls him stating, "I've been in a lot of important positions in this town, but none of them seem as important as the one that I'm in now."
8:28 - “I’m way more nervous than I’ve been … here I am with my neighbors and friends. I’m in a place where I am so deeply hopeful we can maange to get the right thing done, because it’s our community.” He continues, “None of us should have to be here tonight — not on a rational planet.”
8:26 - McKibben takes the stage to large applause.
8:25 - Isham introduces a video from environmental activist Van Jones. He speaks about the history of 350.org, its impact around the world, and the actions taken by the organization to promote awareness of climate change, including the 2011 protests regarding the Keystone Pipeline.
8:21 - Professor of Economics and Chair of the Environmental Science Department Jon Isham comes onto the stage. "How are you Middlebury? Are you ready to do the math?" Isham, who is currently teaching a winter term course titled “Social Entreprenuership in the Liberal Arts,” speaks to the crowd about the complexities of building a world of social justice. “It’s time to carve out our own piece of history,” declares Isham.
8:20 - Neubauer introduces Ellie, a student from the University of Vermont. She speaks to the crowd about the divestment movement at UVM: “We feel responsible to keep the culture at UVM as pure as we can.” After Ellie concludes, Stuart leads the audience in a 'mic-check,' earning loud applause and snaps from the crowd.
8:18 - Greta Neubauer ’14.5 of Divest for Our Future and Molly Stuart ’15.5 of the Dalai Lama Welcoming Committee take the stage. After a moment of silence for the Abenaki people, each student discusses her reason for divestment: Neubauer would like to divest in order to prevent climate change, while Stuart were like to divest in order to stop violence. “Now is the time to take this powerful step,” Neubauer says.
8:13 - May Boeve ’06.5, executive director and co-founder of 350.org, and Phil Aroneanu ’07, U.S. campaign manager and co-founder of 350.org, introduce the event; they tell the story of starting 350.org at the College. “We left a couple things undone — one of them was divesting,” says Aroneau. "Middlebury needs to divest.” Boeve reminds the audience that tonight is the eighth anniversary of the founding of the Sunday Night Group.
8:07 - Musician Max Godfrey '14 has joined Alpenglow on stage. Together, they sing an original song entitled “Susquehana Drill Town,” based on their collective experiences in Cooperstown, N.Y. Cooperstown is located on the Marcellus Shale, a region rich in methane deposits and ripe for hydraulic fracking.
8:00 - Alpenglow thanks the audience and improves their usually lackluster audience banter with a joke from violinist Elori Kramer ’13.5: “We were told if we played here, Bill McKibben would tweet about us.” Will you be tweeting about Alpenglow, @billmckibben?
7:54 - Community members have begun to file into Mead. While the center pews are largely full, plenty of space remains available on the sides and upstairs at the Chapel. Alpenglow’s stripped-down performance has set a calm, reverent mood.
7:47 - As promised, Alpenglow has taken the stage to warm up the crowd for McKibben. This is there second time the band is on stage in as many nights, having performed on Saturday evening as well. The stream of students has slowed; most listen quietly to Alpenglow.
7:36 - Doors have opened and Mead Chapel is slowly filling up. The Chapel is dimly lit with a large sign behind the stage reading 'DIVEST MIDD.' So far only students have been allowed in; community members will be permitted beginning at 7:45.
(01/17/13 5:39pm)
Alpenglow, a five-piece folk band formed in Vermont, will perform in Mead Memorial Chapel at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 19. The band features students Graeme Daubert ’12.5 and Elori Kramer ’13.5. Peter Coccoma '12, Kenneth Root and Colin Weeks complete the group.
This is the band’s second concert in a month’s time. Their first concert introduced a Kickstarter campaign, which was designed to fund their debut album. Now, their second performance on Saturday will celebrate the band’s successful fundraising over the past 25 days for their album.
“We’re really grateful for everyone at Middlebury because we get to see who all the backers are, and the majority of them are students at Middlebury and it’s really endearing,” Coccoma said. “It’s very positive, and [it] gives you a lot of energy to keep going.”
Daubert and Coccoma began sharing their respective rock and folk songs with one another in the fall of 2010. Kramer soon added another folk component, followed by Root on percussion. By semester’s end, they were performing at the Old Stone Mill’s M Gallery.
“I think when [the individual members] came together, that was the beginning of the sound,” Daubert said. Alpenglow quickly earned local praise and recognition.
“So they pretty much win, hands down, for the best new local band,” Seven Days’ Dan Bolles wrote following the Waking Windows festival in Winooski. “Yep. The five-piece outfit has a sprawling indie-folk sound that fans of bands such as Fleet Foxes and the Low Anthem could eat with a spork.”
GCFM Productions added: “My advice is to speak with your friends quickly between songs, because you won’t want to while they’re playing.”
After performing at various venues throughout Vermont and New York, as well as releasing two tracks online, Alpenglow began recording an album at Burlington’s Signal Kitchen in the fall of 2012. Although beneficial for both exploring and developing their sound, production has been costly.
“The recording is almost finished, but there is still a lot of post-production work to be done, and we need to compensate all those involved for their time and energy,” Alpenglow writes. “$6,000 to record mix, master and press the album is the bare minimum to get this album out there.”
The band turned to Kickstarter, an online funding platform through which donors, or backers, can provide monetary assistance to “kickstart” creative projects. Campaign times are limited – 30 days in Alpenglow’s case – and funding is only received if all or more of the requested funds are pledged. If projects are unable to reach this goal within the timeframe, pledges are returned to backers.
“We thought we set it a little high,” Coccoma says. “And we were like, ‘I don’t know if we can do it, but if we work really hard, and we have thirty days, and we just network like crazy, maybe we can pull it off.’”
Nevertheless, Alpenglow’s debut album was quickly funded. Backers received almost daily updates during the first five days as the $3,000, $4,000, and $5,000 dollar marks were reached. On New Year’s Day, less than ten days after starting the campaign, the project was successfully funded.
“Within six days, we did the whole thing and it was just kind of a shock,” Coccoma says.
“It was definitely significantly faster than we anticipated,” Kramer added.
Backers had incentive to fund the project and ensure its success. As is the case with most Kickstarter campaigns, Alpenglow will send various prizes to its backers based on pledge level. Most backers have donated $15 or $20 dollars, earning them either a digital or physical album two weeks prior to its expected release in May. There have also been two $500 dollar pledges, which earns those two donors a personal concert with friends from the band.
“Right now we’re just really focused on getting this first album done and making sure it’s what we want,” Coccoma says. “So far we think it’ll represent us really well.”
Pledging has slowed since the campaign’s successful funding, and the pledge amount now sits just above $7,000. If Alpenglow reaches the $10,000 mark by Tuesday, Jan. 22, they have promised an additional song to backers as a special thank you.
Listen to the Campus' complete interview with Alpenglow, or play either Track #1 or Track #2.
(01/17/13 3:07am)
After a quick winter break, the Middlebury women’s ice hockey team came back to campus to take on Utica and Wesleyan. Even without students in the stands the Panthers still captured the victory against both opponents to end the holiday with a 7-1-1 record.
“Coming back from break we were all very excited to be back together and to begin preparing for a big three game week,” said senior tri-captain Maggie Woodward ’13. “With everyone refreshed and excited to be back on the ice, we had a great week of practices and by Wednesday we were eager to start playing games again.”
This past weekend, the team played Amherst at home back-to-back Friday and Saturday night, Jan. 11 and 12. A tie in the first match did not hold the girls back from taking home the victory after the second match, winning 5-2 on Saturday. The squad now holds a 9-1-2 record with four more NESCAC teams to play and 12 more games before the NESCAC quarterfinals.
The game on Friday was a tough tie for the Panthers, considering that Middlebury was ahead by one goal until the last 31 seconds of the game. The Panthers held a 21-13 shot advantage over Amherst in the first two periods and controlled the puck throughout. However, the Jeffs took back some of that control in the third period, beating out the home team with a 10-5 shot advantage.
The Jeffs also racked up four penalties throughout the game, totaling eight minutes of power play advantage for Middlebury. Middlebury’s only goal was scored by Katie Sullivan ’15 with an assist by Emily Fluke ’15.
“We felt like we left something out on the ice after Friday’s game against Amherst,” said senior tri-captain Madison Styrbicki. “We knew we played pretty well Friday night, but at the end of the game we couldn’t help but feel a little unsatisfied. We felt like we’d left too many goals out on the ice,” added Woodward.
Saturday’s game, however, went much better for the Panthers, as the team beat Amherst 5-2 in regulation time. The first three goals of the game for Middlebury were scored in the first period, setting a tone and a pace which the Amherst team could not match. Senior Lauren Greer ’13 popped in the first two goals for the home team with assists from Sarah Ugalde ’14 and Woodward. The third goal of the first period was scored by Sullivan and assisted by Styrbicki and Hannah Bielawski ’15. The Panthers kept the lead and put one more point on the board in the second with a goal by Styrbicki and assists from Bielawski and Greer.
In the third period, however, the Jeffs came back with two goals to Middlebury’s one to conclude the game with a 5-2 score. Heather Marrison ’13 notched the final goal for the home team and was assisted by Styrbicki. Middlebury outshot Amherst 35-28, with goalie Annabelle Jones ’15 making an impressive 26 saves in the game.
“I think we all came back Saturday ready to play with a little extra edge and to battle for a full 60 minutes,” said Woodward. “Playing Amherst at home is always a high energy statement game and I think we brought a little more energy and were hungry to bury a few more lose pucks on Saturday afternoon. It felt good to be able to compete a little harder on Saturday and come away from the weekend with three points against a pretty good team.”
The fourth-ranked Panthers will compete on the road at Bowdoin next Friday and Saturday, Jan. 18 and 19. The team’s current 9-1-2 record, 6-0-2 in the NESCAC, gives them a comfortable spot in both the league and the national rankings going into the end of the season.
“We take every game individually and by coming out with a win for each day really helps us in our success,” said Madeline Joyce ’14. “We have a saying on our team to ‘be 1-0 at the end of the day; We have very high goals and expectations for the end of the season and if we take each game as it comes I am very confident about our team’s potential.”
(01/17/13 3:00am)
After starting off the new year strong earning their first win in NESCAC play in over a year against Bates Jan. 4, Middlebury continued with a 60-44 win over Suffolk on Jan. 8. Despite falling to Connecticut College 66-57 on Friday, Jan. 11, Middlebury quickly put the loss behind them to finish the week with a 62-45 victory over Wesleyan on Saturday, Jan. 14.
“We were very pleased to win [our first NESCAC game] this year,” co-captain Jesse Miller ’13 said. “As with any win, we are happy but not satisfied. Each game that we play is important to the success of our season and in becoming the team that we strive to be.”
Middlebury started the game against Suffolk from behind, trailing 17-15 with 6:37 left in the first half. However, spurred on by a two and a three-point play from Katie Pett ’14, the Panthers went on a 7-0 run to hold a 22-17 lead, before going into the break with a 26-22 advantage.
The Panthers started off the second half where they had finished, outscoring the Rams 20-5 in the first 10:31 minutes of play, led by a pair of threes from Tracy Borsinger ’13. Middlebury led by as many as 20 points before coming away with the 60-44 win.
Borsinger led the team with 18 points, while Pett recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.
Middlebury was unable to carry the momentum from the win against Suffolk, losing 66-57 against Connecticut College.
Both teams started off slowly, unable to score until Middlebury opened a 6-0 lead at the 14:58, after a three-point shot finally fell for Borsinger. Conn. College answered with a 16-3 run, led by Caitlin Cimino, who had a strong first half for the Camels.
Borsinger dragged the Panthers back into the game with back-to-back threes, cutting the lead to 16-15 with 6:50. Both teams continued to exchange buckets before the Camels took a 27-26 lead into the break thanks to a buzzer-beating lay-up from Kaitlyn Cresencia.
Middlebury kept Conn. College within grasp in the opening minutes of the second half thanks to shots from Borsinger. However, the Camels began to pull away with a 12-5 run amounting to a 50-43 lead with 8:13 left on the clock.
Two lay-ups from Sarah Marcus ’14, gave Middlebury a boost and kept the Panthers within five. Yet Conn. College continued to penetrate the lane, an area where Middlebury typically struggled on defence, for a 10-3 run and an overall lead of 62-50 with 1:13 remaining. Despite a three from Marcus, Middlebury was only able to cut the lead to nine.
Borsinger led the Panthers with a game high of 21 points, 8-18 from the floor, while Scarlett Kirk ’14 had a team best of nine rebounds and game high of five assists.
In a quick turnaround, Middlebury was able to bounce back against Wesleyan with a comfortable 62-45 win.
Learning from their mistakes against Conn. College, Middlebury established their dominance from the beginning of the game quickly building a 13-5 lead, including four points from both Kirk and Borsinger.
Wesleyan was able to slowly close the gap, eventually taking a 19-18 lead after a pair of free throws by Karly Finison at 6:43. Middlebury answered with a 10-0 run finished by a three-pointer from Borsinger to go into the break with a 28-22 lead.
The Cardinals took the lead in the second half with a 9-2 spree. The teams continued to trade buckets before a free throw from Kate Logan ’13 gave the Panthers the lead for good at 10:17. Middlebury built a 51-40 advantage with 5:09 left in the game with five points from Marcus, before converting well from the line as Wesleyan resorted to fouling in the final minutes.
“We share two very specific goals for the team, which is to play good defense and share the ball on offense, and I thought we did that very well against Wesleyan,” Coach Noreen Pecsok said.
Kirk led the game with 16 points while Marcus contributed 13 off the bench. Pett recorded a career-best of 23 rebounds.
“I just knew we had to limit Wesleyan to one shot on the defensive end and offensive rebounds are huge for our momentum, so I just did my best to make sure those things happened,” Pett said of her new record. “As we head into the rest of our NESCAC games, we’re not looking for moral victories. We want the notches in the win column too.”
Despite beating Colby-Sawyer in their season opening tournament, Middlebury was not able to repeat the performance, falling to a 71-62 non-league road defeat on Tuesday, Jan. 15.
The Chargers started the game with a 5-0 lead in the first two minutes of the game, holding the visitors scoreless until the 16:11 when Borsinger connected on a trey. Colby-Sawyer led by as many as nine when Taylor DeSanty sunk a three-pointer at the 13:26 mark to make it 12-3.
While Middlebury was able to cut the deficit to four points at various occasions during the first half, Colby-Sawyer went into the break with a 26-21 lead. The Panthers were only able to shoot 22.6 percent from the floor, but were able to keep the Chargers within reach after forcing 13 turnovers.
Middlebury was never able to take control of the game, always lagging at least three points behind Colby-Sawyer. While the Chargers shot 62.1% in the second half, Middlebury stayed in contention thanks to 7-12 on three-point shooting. The Chargers finally pulled away with a 7-1 run with 1:23 left.
Borsinger led all scorers with 21 points, adding a team-high of nine rebounds, while Kirk claimed 12 points with Lowry in third with 10 points. The Panthers finished the game with a 32.8 percent shooting accuracy thanks to a total of 20 points off of turnovers.
Middlebury returns to action against Hamilton on Friday, Jan. 18.
“Anytime a NESCAC opponent comes to play on our home court, we feel like we have a real chance of winning,” Pecsok said.
(01/17/13 2:41am)
Last weekend the track and field athletes traveled to Dartmouth to open up the winter season at the 44th Annual Dartmouth Relays. For many athletes this weekend marked the beginning of a season that will last throughout the spring as they compete for both the indoor and outdoor teams.
While many runners do compete in both indoor and outdoor track and field, the two are definitely not exactly comparable as Brian Holtzman ’14 explains.
“Indoor track is its own kind of animal compared to outdoors,” said Holtzman. “Some of the events are different with off-distances races such as the 500m and 1000m, and the track isn’t as big, so racing is often a more physical. Also, the variety of indoor tracks is a lot larger than in outdoor tracks -- a time run at Boston University and running at University of Vermont mean two completely different things. On the other hand, being inside guarantees ideal conditions, which is one less variable that needs to be considered. Pole vaulters especially love being inside.”
While competing against several Div. I schools such as Boston College, Northeastern and Dartmouth, several Middlebury athletes secured top spots earning points for Middlebury against tough competition.
Holtzman led the team with standout performances breaking a school record in the 60 meter race with a time of 7.13, which earned him a fourth place finish at the meet. The team continued to show its depth as Will Bain also beat the school record finishing just .03 behind Holtzman with a time of 7.16, earning him a seventh place finish.
“My goal going into the meet was to make the final. I achieved that goal, so I was pleased on that front--breaking the school record was just an added bonus,” said Holtzman. “The biggest thing I can take away from the performance is that I now have established a good starting point for the season and need to continue to work to make sure I improve throughout the season.”
In the 4x200 meter relay the Middlebury men also scored points for the school as the team of Kevin Chu ’13, Sam Rives ’15, Andrew Headrick ’16, and Dan Bent ’13 placed third with a time of 1:34.77.
Despite a depth of skill in the 400 meter dash, Fritz Parker ’15 edged out Patrick Rooney ’13 and Louis Cornacchione ’13 but was unable to reach scoring position, placing seventh while his teammates placed eighth and ninth respectively.
Finishing out the running portion of the meet for the men, was the team of Rooney, Cornacchione, Sam Craft ’14 and Parker who earned a third place finish in the 4x400 meter relay in a time of 3:27.77.
The Panther men also had an impressive turnout in the Field Events as Alec Drobac '16 scored for the team with a fifth place finish in the long jump.
The Panther women had an equally impressive meet, as Emily Dodge ’13 kicked off the meet with a fourth place finish in the 60 meter hurdles. Alexandra Morris ’16 continued to score for the team with a fifth place finish in the 400-meter dash with a time of 61.37.
Grace Doering ’13 also added to the team points with a fourth place finish in the high jump, jumping 1.54 meters.
While the meet was successful for the team, Holtzman sees this part of the season as a preview for what is to come in the spring.
“Indoors is really a preview for outdoors,” said Holtzman. “Historically, our team greatly improves between the winter and the spring because the events tailor more to our strengths. We have some big meets coming up against teams across all divisions and then the championships in late February which will culminate in the NCAA. From there we will start to focus on contending for a NESCAC championship in late April.”
The Panther athletes will continue their season this Friday Jan. 18 at UVM.
(01/17/13 2:31am)
The Middlebury Men’s and Women’s Squash teams have continued their string of early season success in the start of the next segment of their season this winter term. After a brief respite in match play over December break, the Panther Men and Women have returned with decisive wins over fellow NESCAC teams Bowdoin and Colby College. The Panther men won the Bowdoin and Colby matches 6-3 and 9-0 respectively, while the Panther women won both of those matches by a score of 8-1.
The Panther women faced a tough week this week with matches against Mt. Holyoke, Williams, Amherst and Connecticut College. Middlebury was able to capture wins against Mt. Holyoke, Amherst, and Connecticut College by scores of 7-2, 7-2, and 9-0 respectively.
The Middlebury women did, however, fall short of a win in a nail-biting match against perennial powerhouse Williams College in which they lost 5-4. Charlotte Dewey ’15, remained undefeated in all four of her matches after defeating the no. two players of each of the four teams. Annie Wymard ’15 garnered two wins against the no. three seeds from Connecticut College and Amherst College.
The success of the women’s team can also largely be attributed to a number of underclassmen players who have stepped up successfully to fill important positions in the teams seeding order.
“While we lost to Williams, it was a great environment to play in due to the large crowd and vocal fans which makes matches like that enjoyable despite having lost,” said Wymard.
Like Wymard, Dewey was equally positive about the team’s latest matches.
“It was a squash filled weekend, and we ended up playing really well,” said Dewey. “We won three out of the four matches and had a great run against Williams despite the loss. Overall it was a great weekend of squash and we hope to carry the momentum into next weekend when we play Cornell, Yale and F&M.”
The Panther men also faced a tough weekend with three matches played in a three day span against Williams, Amherst and Connecticut College. Although the men’s team fell to Williams by a match score of 7-2, they were able to bounce back with two wins against Amherst College and Connecticut College by scores of 7-2 and 9-0 respectively. Parker Hurst ’14 remained undefeated over the course of the weekend while playing in the no. 2 spot for the Panthers.
Both the men’s and women’s squash teams rolled past visiting Hamilton on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 15, with both squads winning 9-0. The men went to four games at the number-four and number-five slots, but otherwise had little trouble with the 21st-ranked Continentals. On the women’s side, the Panthers swept through the top eight matches, before Annie Ulrich ’13 went to a fifth game before defeating her opponent in the ninth slot. The Hamilton women entered the day as the nation’s 16th-ranked team.
Coach John Illig earned his 500th career win over the weekend with his career record remaining at 506-314. Illig has coached Squash at a number of top ranked college for over 22 years.
The Panther men face a mid-week match against Hamilton at home, and matches against Cornell and Franklin & Marshall at the Yale Round Robin this coming weekend. The Panther women will also face the same schedule for the next week.
“This weekend will prove to be a challenge as well when we face both Cornell and Yale, but I think the main focal point this weekend will be to continue to coach each other well and supporting one another from the sidelines and hope that our two-a-days pay off,” said Wymard.
(01/17/13 1:40am)
The third-ranked Panthers have opened NESCAC play with four straight wins, improving to 14-0 on the season. Three of those wins, however, came by three points or fewer, including a pair of one-point wins over Tufts and Wesleyan — the latter coming in a 79-78 overtime victory on Saturday, Jan. 12. In all three contests, Middlebury’s opponents have missed opportunities to tie or win the game at the buzzer, preserving Middlebury’s undefeated record.
Middlebury opened NESCAC play with a Friday night game in Lewistown, Maine against Bates followed by a game in Medford, Mass. less than 20 hours later.
In a physical matchup with Bates, the Panthers limited the Bobcats to just 41 percent shooting from the floor, but were outrebounded 42-24, and 14-3 on the offensive glass, by the Bobcats, the shortest team in the conference.
“I don’t care who we play — we can’t [get outrebounded] by 18,” said senior captain Peter Lynch ’13. “[Rebounding] was a huge emphasis in practice this week. We’re doing everything right, but we’re not being aggressive enough to go get it. We’re trying to box out, but we weren’t being tough enough.”
The following day at Tufts Middlebury quickly found itself in a 7-0 hole as the Jumbos jumped on the visitors early. Trailing 52-39, the Panthers finally made their run, outscoring Tufts 24-9 over the next 8:18 to take a 63-61 lead with 4:39 remaining in the game.
Leading 70-69 with 24 seconds remaining, Jake Wolfin ’13 attempted a full court pass to James Jensen ’14 behind the Jumbos’ press in the corner of the court. Unable to haul in Wolfin’s pass, Jensen turned the ball over, giving Tufts one final chance to win the game. The Panthers’ swingman rectified his mistake, however, rejecting Kwame Firempong’s game-winning layup attempt as time expired.
Middlebury returned home a week later, hosting Connecticut College and Wesleyan in a pair of matchups featuring two of the NESCAC’s top scorers: the Camels’ Matt Vadas, the conference’s top scorer, and Wesleyan’s Shasha Brown, a first-team All-NESCAC selection a season ago.
In Friday’s game against Conn. College, Middlebury found itself trailing early, as the Camels scored 12 of the game’s first 16 points. Nolan Thompson ’13 kept the Panthers in the game on both ends of the floor, as he connected on each of his first six shots of the game, accounting for 10 of the team’s first 12 points and 15 of the first 19. Defensively he limited Vadas, also the leader in field goal attempts per game, to just four points on two shots in the first half.
Despite Thompson’s near-perfect performance on both ends, Middlebury trailed by two at the half as the Camels shot better than 50 percent from the floor and Thompson’s teammates shot an icy 8-26 over the first 20 minutes of the game.
After a poor first half, Middlebury erupted out of the break, scoring the first 10 points of the second half, and 13 of 15 as Joey Kizel ’14 scored eight of his team-high 17 second-half points in the first 5:17 of the period. After the Camels cut the lead to four with 13:14 remaining, Panthers methodically extended the lead, culminating in a convincing 85-68 win as the Panthers totaled 51 second half points on 61 percent shooting.
The seminal moment of the game came with 6:44 to play. Needing just six assists to break Ben Rudin ’09’s all-time assist mark, Wolfin found Kizel on the wing for a wide-open three, extending the lead to nine and giving Wolfin his sixth assist of the game 461st dime of his career, a new program record.
“The assist record means a lot to me,” said Wolfin. “Middlebury has an amazing basketball tradition and to be in the record books for assists is really cool. More importantly, this record is a testament to my teammates who have finished for me over the past four years. The play that it happened on was typical of our team. Everyone touched the ball and we all passed up on good shots to get a great shot.”
Thompson, the NESCAC Player of the Week, played the first 38 minutes of the game, adding seven rebounds, three assists and a block while holding Vadas to seven points on two of six shooting.
“On the court you see it — he’s nonstop — he doesn’t get tired,” assistant coach Scott Picard said of Thompson. “You ask him to play full court defense for 40 minutes, and he does it.”
Thompson may see even more minutes going forward, as reserve guards Nate Bulluck ’14 and Dean Brierley ’15 both sustained injuries that will keep them out multiple weeks. The injuries are particularly costly given the absence of Dylan Sinnickson ’15, a breakout player as a first-year last season, who has yet to play this season after breaking his forearm in the preseason.
“It’s just crazy [how] that stuff will happen,” said Lynch. “Three hustle plays and [three injuries]. So now it’s up to other guys — and it’s a good thing we’re so deep. It’s giving other guys other opportunities.”
With the top two reserve guards unavailable, junior Albert Nascimento ’14 saw extended minutes off the bench, and rose to the occasion, draining a three in each half and playing strong on-ball defense during his 10 minutes on the floor.
Despite Nascimento’s contribution, Middlebury trailed again early against Wesleyan, falling behind by nine midway through the first half before closing the gap as the half closed. The Panthers opened the game in a 3-2 zone, challenging Wesleyan, which entered the game shooting just 32 percent from three as a team, to beat them with the long ball.
Middlebury took its first lead of the game on a Jensen three-point play with two minutes left in the half. Five straight points from Wesleyan’s Derick Beresford, including a three to beat the shot clock, gave the Cardinals the lead again with less than 10 seconds remaining in the half, setting the scene for the final dramatic play of the half. Catching the inbound pass with seconds remaining, Wolfin released the basketball a couple feet behind the half court circle, sinking the desperation heave to give Middlebury a one-point advantage at the half.
“[In] the first half of the Wesleyan [game] my shot felt a little bit off,” he said. “For some reason that half court shot felt good. There was definitely some luck involved but it gave me confidence going into the second half. I felt much more comfortable on the first few shots of the second half and got into a rhythm.”
Wolfin hit his first three shots after the break providing the catalyst for a 16-4 Middlebury run early in the period, which gave the Panthers a 46-35 lead at the 13:37 mark. Wolfin and Kizel accounted for 14 of the 16 points in the run, and 21 second half points overall as Kizel led the Panthers with 13 second half points.
The Panthers took their largest lead of the game with 5:55 remaining and seemingly had the game in hand. However, over the final 5:09 of regulation, Brown scored 12 points on four field goal attempts as he and senior center Mike Callaghan combined to score Wesleyan’s final 21 points of regulation and 27 of the team’s final 29, including 24 straight.
Trailing by two after a pair of free throws from Brown with eight seconds left, Wesleyan fouled Wolfin on the ensuing inbound pass, sending him to the line to shoot two free throws. The Middlebury guard — a 76 percent free throw shooter on the season — made the front end, giving the Panthers a three-point lead, but left the second shot short with a chance to ice the game. The rebound fell to Brown, who was immediately fouled with 3.2 seconds remaining, denying him the opportunity to launch a game-tying three at the buzzer. Instead, Brown went to the line, needing to make the first free throw before intentionally missing the second in order to give his team a chance to tie the game with an offensive rebound and put back before the buzzer.
After the Wesleyan guard converted the first shot, Middlebury head coach Jeff Brown called timeout to set up his defense for the final play.
“During the huddle, coach [Brown] said, ‘I don’t want to get beat on the three so let’s make them execute something perfectly’ and it happened to be [executed] perfectly,” assistant coach Scott Picard said.
“Instead of having two players on the line I elected to have two off the line because [Wesleyan] had [Mike] Callaghan and Beresford at the top [of the key] and I really didn’t want to see them get possession of the ball and back out for a three that would win the game,” said Brown.
With nobody to box him out to his right, the Wesleyan guard alertly threw the ball on a line at the rim, just to the right of the center, bouncing the ball directly back to himself and away from Thompson who was attempting to box him out from the other side. Wesleyan’s Brown collected the ball, took a dribble to his right and floated a shot off the glass and in at the buzzer to send the game into overtime.
“Shasha Brown nailed that free throw perfectly and he’s such a freak athlete, just so quick to the ball, that he got it back and had an unbelievably easy shot,” coach Brown said. “But we did have another five minutes to play, and to our credit, our guys just kept battling and the character and heart of our group is really, really special. [For] a lot of teams losing a 12-point lead and then getting behind in overtime there would be some quit, but not with our guys.”
After trading scores, Middlebury had the ball up one with 56 seconds remaining in overtime. The Panthers struggled to find a good look and failed to extend their lead, allowing Wesleyan to hold for the final shot of the game and a chance to upset undefeated Middlebury at home.
Coming out of a timeout, Brown tried to use a ball screen to get around the corner and into the lane for the final shot of the game. Instead, Hunter Merryman ’15 hedged the screen, blocking Brown’s lane to the basket and forcing the electric guard to take an off-balance three-pointer at the buzzer, which bounced off the backboard and front rim, giving Middlebury the one-point victory.
“Until the horn went off I wasn’t sure what was going to happen,” coach Brown said. “Sha [Brown] got back up and threw up a prayer and from where I was sitting, I [thought] it might go in.”
The win improved the Panthers to 13-0, and 4-0 in NESCAC play.
Tuesday, Jan. 15, the Panthers traveled to Castleton State to play their in-state rivals. Hoping to slow down the NESCAC’s top-rated offense coming into the game, the Spartans slowed the pace of play, killing as much clock as possible and limiting Middlebury to just 54 points on 48 field goals. While Castleton State limited the Middlebury’s shot attempts, the hosts failed to slow Lynch who scored 23 points on 11 of 12 shooting, dominating the paint against a much smaller Spartan team. No other Panther player reached double digits, but Kizel finished with a strong all-around performance, scoring eight points while grabbing four rebounds and dishing out five assists. Middlebury opened up an early lead in the game and received another boost from a buzzer beater to end the half — this time off the hand of Thompson. Out of the break the Panthers scored eight of the first 10 points of the second half and outscored the Spartans 30-19 in the second period en route to improving to 14-0.
Middlebury hosts Hamilton Friday, Jan. 18.
(01/17/13 1:11am)
Research conducted by Associate Professor of Psychology Matthew Kimble found that female undergraduates who study abroad are significantly more likely to experience rape and other types of sexual assault than women who remain on campus. Specifically, Kimble’s study found that women abroad are over four times more likely to experience nonconsensual sexual contact, such as groping, over three times more likely to experience attempted sexual assault and are five times more likely to experience completed sexual assault, or rape.
The study, conducted in 2009, consisted of a survey filled out by 218 junior and senior females at the College who had studied abroad within the previous two academic years. Of the 218 women, 83 reported having some sort of an unwanted sexual experience while abroad, 60 reported at least one incident of unwanted touching, 13 reported an attempted sexual assault — either oral, anal or vaginal — and 10 women reported completed sexual assault.
Additionally, Kimble’s study found that the majority of any type of sexual assault was done not by students, but by non-student local residents, who accounted for 86.8 percent of nonconsensual sexual contact. The remainder was done by either fellow students from the study abroad program or local resident students. Similar percentages were found for attempted sexual assault (77.8 percent) and completed sexual assault (67.7 percent).
The initial research only surveyed female students, as women are statistically more likely to experience sexual assault than men, but Kimble said the samples at Middlebury and Bucknell now include men and have been expanded to include other types of trauma, such as accidents or natural disasters.
Kimble’s research, first published in Oct. 2012 in the journal Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice and Policy, began in 2009 when Professor of Psychology at Bucknell University William Flack approached him about collaborating on research analyzing sexual assault on students while they studied abroad. Flack conducted a tandem study at Bucknell, which found results comparable to Kimble’s.
Kimble and Flack’s study was printed at a critical moment; sexual assault has become increasingly relevant as a topic of discussion on campuses across America, particularly in the aftermath of a controversial publication this past fall in which an Amherst student recounted her experience with sexual assault on campus and the way in which the situation was handled by her college’s administration.
Kimble said that he believes this research is part of a much larger discussion addressing the issue of sexual assault on college campuses and abroad.
“This work falls within the broader context of the body of work over the years that has emphasized the prevalence of sexual assault on women and the extent to which the rates are typically higher than what people would guess, largely because it is crime that tends to go unreported,” wrote Kimble in an email.
Vice President of Language Schools, Schools Abroad and Graduate Programs and Professor of German Michael Geisler is currently grappling with this exact issue of unreported incidents. While Kimble’s study found that 10 women reported cases of rape, Geisler cited that only one official report of sexual assault has been made to the College in the last three or four years, perhaps even longer.
“This study has actually been very helpful in telling us that there is this gap between what students have reported and what they have experienced,” said Geisler.
Currently, the College’s study abroad office dedicates a section of its handbook — available online and distributed in hard copy to all students going abroad — to sexual assault and harassment. Directors on campus also speak with students about sexual assault during a pre-orientation meeting, and directors of the programs abroad speak with students about sexual assault again during an orientation once students arrive in their respective countries.
According to Associate Dean for Judicial Affairs and Student Life Karen Guttentag, Kimble first shared his preliminary research with her and the study abroad staff last summer. Since then, Geisler said the College has been working on various ways to address the issue of sexual assault abroad and minimize the discrepancy between reported cases and students’ actual experiences.
Some options that Geisler said the study abroad office has been considering and will most likely implement in the near future aim to put tighter regulations on attending the pre-orientation meeting. While the meeting is currently mandatory, Geisler said many students still do not attend it due to other commitments. In the future, students may not be allowed to go abroad until they attend the pre-orientation meeting. Another plan is to bring in local students to in-country orientations to give abroad students a more authentic sense of how to conduct themselves in certain scenarios that could get them into trouble. Lastly, Geisler said that the study abroad office is thinking of revamping their general warning on sexual harassment and sexual assault in their handbook to become a country-specific warning, in order to address varying cultural cues and customs that students should be aware of more clearly.
Guttentag, who is also the head of the Sexual Assault Oversight Committee (SAOC) at the College, deals with similar difficulties in getting students to report cases of sexual harassment or sexual assault. She said that while there are many reasons that students may pause before reporting cases while on campus, these are probably compounded by other factors when students experience sexual assault abroad.
“There are certainly many factors that play into a student’s decision to report sexual assault in general, including fear of backlash, stigma, self-blame, an attempt to cope by minimizing the significance of the assault and an inability at the time of the incident to recognize it as an assault,” wrote Guttentag in an email. “When we consider an assault that occurs during a study abroad program, I can imagine that several additional factors might come into play.”
While the study abroad office is trying to work to encourage students to feel comfortable reporting cases of sexual assault despite these factors, Kimble and Flack are now working to identify the elements that may lend themselves to the increase in cases of sexual assault while abroad.
Kimble said that at the start of their research, he and Flack “hypothesized that the risk might be higher while abroad because of factors such as the lack of familiarity with the culture, limited fluency in the language and legal access to alcohol for the first time.”
Kimble admitted that the goal of the initial study was not to identify the risk factors, but he said that there were some noticeable trends in the information he received. The first was that fluency did not seem to have an effect on whether or not students did or did not experience sexual assault. Kimble used a self-rated measure of fluency on his survey and found that it did not differ among students that experienced any type of sexual assault. Kimble wrote in his study that he would need a larger sample size in order to confidently state that fluency plays no role in the risk of sexual assault.
One factor that does appear to play a large role in the risk of sexual assault is based on the region students visited. Kimble’s study was too small to assess country-specific risk, but he did find that all regions except for English-speaking Europe and Australia posed additional risk for sexual assault. In addition, the Americas and Africa had the most significant increases in the more severe forms of sexual assault. Risk for completed sexual assault was higher in the Americas than any other region.
Finally, Kimble stated that factors that often play into higher risk for new college first-years while on campus may also result in higher risk while abroad: “lack of familiarity with local culture, legal access to alcohol and being targeted by perpetrators who see new students as vulnerable.”
Kimble said that he and Flack “hope the work leads to better prevention strategies, in part by increasing awareness of the possibility of these types of experiences while studying abroad.”
Geisler has been using the research for just that purpose, and his goal now is to get more students to report incidents of sexual assault.
“The more we know about the kinds of situations where this happens, the more we can anticipate and warn other students about it,” said Geisler. “That’s why we need that data, and so if students could help us by reporting this in whatever way they see fit, that would be really wonderful. The directors are trained in dealing with these kinds of situations, the counseling center is standing by to help out, but we need to know what’s going on.”
(01/17/13 1:07am)
JusTalks, a student-led forum to engage identity and promote campus-wide discussion on personal and social issues, will launch its pilot event Friday, Jan. 18. The event will begin on at 7 p.m. with an address from keynote speaker Professor of Africana Studies, Dr. Tricia Rose of Brown University. Her talk, open to the general school community, will touch on topics that will highlight conversation for the following day. Saturday will be dedicated to the forum. The first half of the day will address identity — what it is and how each student identifies — and the second will cover Middlebury specific issues.
JusTalks, which emerged as an independent initiative undertaken by Rhiya Trivedi ’12 and Matt Johnson ’12 in the fall of 2011, stemmed from weekly Social Justice Coalition meetings when a group of students raised the idea of hosting a continuation of first-year orientation during winter term in the form of a series of events focusing on issues of identity and diversity. These discussions will include race, gender, sexual orientation, class, ability and religion, among others.
“I was really drawn to this idea from different experiences I had on campus and just feeling like there were certain people I could talk to about these things and then certain people I couldn’t,” said Carllee James ’13, one of the co-leaders of JusTalks. “I wanted it to be a more comfortable, campus-wide discussion.”
Alex Jackman ’14, another JusTalks co-leader, added, “I was frustrated. I felt that there were a lot of different people who were having these discussions in smaller groups separately but not doing any work together ... and we were hoping to help bring those conversations together.”
Other JusTalks members felt as though these conversations were largely absent in the College community altogether. Group co-leader Alice Oshima ’15 explained: “I was coming from a high school that had more of an inclusive community than I felt Middlebury had ... and that these issues were being talked about a bit more in my high school.”
The initial plan for the JusTalks event proposed a mandatory two-day event that would take place during a student’s first winter term on campus and would include large group activities like a repeat of the MiddUncensored activity first-year students complete during their orientation, and smaller group discussions led by student facilitator.
The timing of JusTalks was intentionally chosen for a variety of reasons. “Because of winter term’s more relaxed schedule, students have more time to reflect on what’s happened in their fall semester,” said co-leader Elma Burnham ’13.
Additionally, as Jackman explained, “These discussions and conversations are important to have towards the beginning of one’s Middlebury career and hopefully they’ll take away tools to use during the rest of their time here.”
Last winter and spring, student leaders conducted a campus outreach project in which they visited different organizations, teams, and residence halls at the College, seeking feedback on and endorsement of their idea. After receiving positive feedback from many student groups, the JusTalks team contacted the administration to officially pitch the JusTalks project.
“I was immediately impressed with the very thoughtful way these students were engaging this issue,” Dean of the College Shirley Collado said of the initiative. “They were looking for deeper communication among students and were really asking hard questions about our campus culture, how students interact and how students can be more accountable to each other.”
“The [JusTalks] curriculum provides an opportunity for students to celebrate diversity and to grapple with tough issues that are specific to our community in a safe space,” added Associate Dean of Students J.J. Boggs in an email. “We can’t help but benefit from the increased awareness, diverse perspective, and honest dialogue.”
With the help and support of administrators and faculty such as Collado and Boggs, as well as Associate Dean of Students Katy Smith Abbott, Associate Professor of Education Studies and Wonnacott Commons Head Jonathan Miller-Lane, Visiting Assistant Professor of Education Studies Tara Affolter, and Wonnacott Commons Dean Matt Longman, JusTalks student leaders have brought their idea to life this school year. The project organizers hope that the the upcoming pilot program will help them to fully test and further gather feedback on the initiative.
Students were invited to sign-up for participation in the kick-off event this past fall, the first 180 of which will be able to attend the forum. Twenty additional students were chosen through an application process to lead small group discussions as student facilitators. Throughout the fall these students were trained by three faculty members, as well as by an outside facilitator and curriculum developer, Professor Marta Esquilin from Columbia University.
Though the JusTalks initiative received much endorsement in its campaign last year, the JusTalks team original proposal to make the program mandatory for all students was met with some hesitation.
“People felt like they shouldn’t be forced to go to an event,” said James. “It’s difficult to ask 180 people who might not know each other well to stand in a circle and open up to peers,” acknowledged James. “So we’re kind of asking people to take that leap with us. [But] at the end of the day, I believe that having it be mandatory is what would make it the most successful.”
“It’ll be one of the few things in our Middlebury careers where we’ll all have the same shared experience,” Jackman added.
Collado also expressed concern that requiring first-years to attend the event would be a point of tension surrounding the initiative.
“The students organizing this want to make sure that other students don’t see this as some program about being politically correct or some diversity training,” Collado said. “That is not what this is.”
Although JusTalks student leaders do not expect an immediate change, they hope the initiative will create a more inclusive and comfortable campus climate in the future.
We’re hoping [JusTalks] will give students experience in having these conversations,” said Burnham.
“JusTalks is an opportunity to judge less and listen more—to look up and out, and into the faces and eyes of others that are here,” Associate Professor of Education Studies Jonathan Miller-Lane explained in an email. “Given how much time and energy we all spend trying to get to this campus in the Champlain Valley of Vermont, seems like a good thing to pay attention to the kind community we are actually constructing once we are here.”
For more information on the JusTalks initiative, visit go/justalks.
(12/05/12 6:27pm)
The Middlebury men’s hockey team hosted a pair of NESCAC opponents, Connecticut College and Tufts University, this past weekend, Nov. 30 and Dec. 1. The two-game set started off with mild frustration, as the Panthers surrendered the game-tying goal to Conn. Coll. with 1:35 remaining in the third to settle for a tie. That frustration was erased on Saturday, however, as NESCAC Player-of-the-Week Louis Belilse ’14 propelled Middlebury past Tufts in a 9-2 blowout win with a record-tying performance, netting four goals and two assists. The team now sits at 3-1-2, 2-0-2 in the NESCAC, tied for second in the conference.
Head coach Bill Beaney explained his team’s mentality heading into the weekend after losing 5-4 to in-state rival Norwich in the heartbreaking final of the PrimeLink tournament on Nov. 24.
“Obviously the week before was a tough loss to Norwich, but we were more concerned with the first home game,” said Beaney. “With so many guys playing their first home game, we were worried about nerves and how players would react. At the beginning, we played good defense but we were tentative. Later, we came on and were in great shape, and got the three goals.”
The Panthers started off the game with three good scoring chances in the game’s first seven minutes, but it was the Camels who got on the board first at the 10:06 mark. Connecticut then added another tally 3:37 into the second.
Terrence Goguen ’16, a first-year defender, finally solved the Camels’ keeper off a point shot, with assists from Belisle and Evan Neugold ’16, on the power play 12:05 into the second period. Thomas Freyre ’14 then tied the game for Middlebury 3:05 later, again on the power play, this time off a pass from Goguen. Freyre found the net once more 12:28 in the third for the Panthers’ third extra-man goal, giving Middlebury the 3-2 lead.
However, just as it happened the previous week, the Panthers fell victim to a late goal. What Beaney called a “seeing-eye” shot eluded Middlebury goalie Nick BonDurant ’14, evening the score at 3-3, and that result held through the five-minute overtime.
“It’s one of those things that happens in hockey all the time,” said Beaney. “Part of what makes hockey such a great game is that a team can be outplayed, yet still come out with a tie. Unfortunately, we were probably the team that outplayed them, and I thought we might have deserved better than the tie.”
Saturday erased any feelings of disappointment, however, as the Panthers came out flying against Tufts and had the Jumbos on the ropes by the end of the first frame. Belisle scored his first two goals for the Panthers in the first period, using his speed to blow past Tufts’ defenders in the neutral zone and create odd-man chances. Michael Longo ’14 also scored his third of the year, as the Panthers outshot Tufts 14-3 in the first.
The second period saw the Jumbos pull first-year keeper Derek Metcalfe in favor of regular starter Brian Philips, who played in Tufts’ 5-3 loss the night before at Williams. Philips faired even worse, though, as he was replaced later in the period in favor of Greg Jenkins, Tufts’ third goalie in the game.
Trevor Pollock ’13 converted on his first of the year 4:41 from a shot by Goguen. Robbie Dobrowski ’15 then scored his first career goal off a feed from Belisle at 10:32. Dobrowski ended the day with two goals, scoring late in the third as well. Belisle then recorded his hat trick at 12:50 on an end-to-end rush, before scoring his fourth of the game just minutes later at 13:45.
Belisle’s goal pushed the Panthers lead to 7-0. With an assist on Chris Steele’s ’13 goal with 53 seconds left in the third period, Belisle then tied the modern era (since 1965) record for points in a game with his sixth. He might have broken this record too, as he ripped a shot off the crossbar mid-way through the third period.
The junior defenseman said he was happy that his strong play benefited the team.
“It really was a team effort, and I was fortunate to find myself in scoring position at the end of great plays made by my teammates,” said Belisle. “My line mates and I had great chemistry in the game and connected some nice passes, we used our speed to get by the other team’s defense and we took advantage of our scoring opportunities.”
The game against Tufts finished at 9-2, with seven Panther players recording at least two points.
Assistant coach Jamie McKenna commented on the team’s performance.
“A lot of the guys had strong games for us against Tufts. And I think that’s what you’ll see from this team going forward,” said McKenna. “We have a lot of players that can contribute offensively on any given night and that’s what is going to really help us this year. When all the players are focused and tuned in, you’ll see nights like the one against Tufts. When they aren’t, you’ll see games like the one against Connecticut College.”
BonDurant recorded 11 saves and allowed one goal for the Panthers, and was substituted for sophomore Michael Peters ’15 late in the game. Peters was strong in his debut, letting up one goal on eight shots in the frame.
The big story of the weekend, however, was Belisle’s historic performance.
“What we’ve found with Lou is that coming out of the back the way he does he can find open ice and attack people with speed. As a forward, he didn’t have as many chances to attack open ice with the puck,” said Beaney. “As I’m looking at it as a coach, it’s kind of a head scratcher in that I’m wondering why I didn’t do it before. He’ll probably stay in the back, both because he can generate offense and he can break the puck out of the zone. He is a very tough guy to forcheck.”
Belisle reflected on his achievement.
“It’s definitely a great feeling, so many great players and successful teams have represented Middlebury over the years, and being part of this really is something that I will remember for a long time,” said Belisle. “It’s not something that you think about when you play, I learned after the game that I had tied the records. It feels amazing, and I am happy to contribute offensively to the team’s success.”
Beaney was also impressed with Dobrowski’s two-goal game.
“Dobrowski had the first two goals of his career, and it was nice to see him do well,” said Beaney. He’s put in a lot of work to be ready for this year. He was a guy that only played in two or three games last season, so his performance is a good story of perseverance.”
The Panthers get set to take on Hamilton this Friday night, Dec. 7, before a date with reigning NESCAC champion Amherst on Saturday at 4 p.m. When asked if Amherst was particularly important given the loss to them in NESCAC last season, the answer was definitive.
“I will tell you when Saturday comes around, our guys will be ready to play and there will be extra incentive, no question about it,” said Beaney.
(12/05/12 6:24pm)
The women’s basketball team conceded another away loss, falling to Emmanuel 62-50 on Saturday, Dec. 1, but recovered at home on Tuesday, Dec. 4 with a decisive 72-44 victory over Norwich to improve to 3-4 on the season.
The Panthers controlled the game in its early stages before Saints player Fiona O’Dwyer tied the score at 7-7 with a three-pointer. She followed up with a jumper to give Emmanuel its first lead, before Katie Pett ’14 hit a shot from the wing to bring the score back to 9-9.
After a free throw from Laura Benvenuto to make it 10-9, the Saints never trailed for the rest of the game. After building up a lead of 22-10, Middlebury responded with a 13-2 run to make it a one-point game at 24-23 with just three minutes left in the half.
Emmanuel opened the second half with a 6-0 run to increase their lead to 36-25 after a layup by Liz Daley.
While the Saints managed to keep a double-digit lead for most of the half, the Panthers managed to pull it back to six after a Pett layup with just 12 minutes remaining. However, Emmanuel responded quickly to pull their lead back up to double-figures at 49-39, holding on for the eventual win of 62-50.
“We should come away from this game with the confidence that we can not only stick with but also potentially beat a very good team,” said co-captain Kate Logan ’13. “By focusing on our game plan and forcing Emmanuel to play a style that they were not comfortable with, we very much challenged a strong team that is ranked 16th nationally.”
Tracy Borsinger ’13 led the Panthers with 13 points while Pett claimed 10 rebounds and a pair of steals.
Coach Noreen Pecsok is looking to prepare her team for the final push before winter break.
“Much of our time will be spent in preparation for our opponents,” said Pecsok. “We hope to play well and head into the break with a few wins and some positive momentum.”
Middlebury looked to bounce back with their first home game against Norwich on Tuesday Dec. 4.
The Panthers started off strong as they quickly opened up a 9-0 lead including a jumper on the buzzer from Borsinger and a three from Laura Lowry ’14.
After vowing to work on tightening up their defense, Middlebury looked strong and tight in the back court, forcing travels and air balls from Norwich. The Panthers dominated the boards in the first half, looking to quickly running the floor.
Nora Kelly ’15 made an instant impact off the bench, finding Kristina Conroy ’14 off a backdoor cut, before sinking a three pointer moments later.
Norwich made a run at the end of the half to pull back some points, after a three-point play from Norwich’s Katrina Laidlaw. Scarlett Kirk ’14 finished off the scoring with 37 seconds with a layup bringing the score to 40-19.
Middlebury picked up where they left off in the second half with a 12-0 run, easily opening Norwich on the counter, converting many fast-break points. The Cadets introduced a press, but were unable break down the Panthers.
Pett and Kirk were both strong from the line, and two free-throws from Pett brought the score to 62-37 with 8:28 remaining. The Panthers also had particular success on the baseline with jumpers from Borsinger and Kirk.
Kirk led her team with 21 points and 10 rebounds while Borsinger recorded 15 and 10. Middlebury faces Johnson State at home on Thursday, Dec. 6.
(12/05/12 6:22pm)
The Middlebury men’s squash team continued their early season string of success this past weekend, Nov. 30 to Dec. 2, going 2-1 over three days of matches this past weekend both at home and at Dartmouth. Despite falling 1-8 to the perennial powerhouse United States Naval Academy on Friday evening, the Panther Men quickly recovered and fought hard to win both of their matches versus Bowdoin and Drexel by team scores of 5-4.
In their match against Navy on Friday night, the Panther men garnered their only individual win from Parker Hurst ’14 in the number-two spot, who won his match in four games. Despite losing the other eight individual matches, five of them were played to five games, indicating that the team results could have certainly gone a different way.
On Saturday, the Panther men travelled to Dartmouth where they played in a round robin versus 20th-ranked Bowdoin. Middlebury took the first match versus Bowdoin by a team score of 5-4. They then rallied back at home on Sunday, and taking a match 5-4 against 24th-ranked Drexel in a nail-biting finish that came down to captain Jay Dolan ’13 winning his number-one spot match in five games against Drexel’s Ibrahim Bakir. Other notable performances in the Drexel match include wins from Robert Galuccio ’13 in the number-five spot, and wins from Harrison Croll ’15, Will Hanley ’15, and Willy Clarke ’15 in the seven, eight and nine-spots, respectively.
“We were happy with the two good tight wins over Drexel and Bowdoin,” said co-captain Spencer Hurst ’13. “Different guys have been stepping up in each match, which is good to see. However, we need to keep working hard over break to assure a successful J-term.”
The women’s squash team, with a much lighter schedule, won its match by a team score of 7-2 versus Drexel on Sunday. The women won their three, four, five, sox, seven, eight and nine-spot matches all in three or four games. Despite losses in, their top two-spot matches, both were finished close, as each was played to four games.
Both teams have a break over the next few weeks until matches start again in early January.
(12/01/12 2:17pm)
In the fall of 1994, Middlebury’s President Emeritus John McCardell Jr. and the College’s Board of Trustees instituted the “One Percent for Art” policy. This policy sets aside one percent of the cost of any capital project — including the construction of new buildings and the renovation of existing campus infrastrcture — that exceeds $1 million in cost. These funds are used for the purchase, installation and maintenance of works of art publicly displayed on campus.
Familiar works of arts including “Frisbee Dog” in front of Munroe, “Smog” in front of McCardell Bicentennial Hall and “Solid State Change” next to the Franklin Environmental Center at Hillcrest were all purchased using funds set aside as a result of this policy. The policy’s aims include developing and completing the identity of the institution as well as enhancing the aesthetic and educational mission of the public arts on campus.
The One Percent funds are managed by the Committee on Art in Public Places (CAPP). The committee is comprised of faculty members, students, administrators and trustees of the College.
The CAPP is responsible for both evaluating and approving gifts of art that are intended for public display at the college, as well as purchasing new works art. In all instances, a majority vote of CAPP members is required for any work to be accepted as a gift or purchased using One Percent funds.
Since the economic downturn, the College administration has suspended the One Percent for Art policy. Currently, the maintenance of public art pieces already on campus is still supported by the One Percent funds. No new purchases, however, have been made in the past three years.
Richard Saunders, director of the Museum of Art, serves as chair of CAPP. He said that as College finances improve, he hopes the One Percent suspension will soon be overturned.
“Even though the One Percent purchase policy is presently suspended, we do hope that this prohibition on purchases will be rescinded soon. But I do not know when this might happen,” Saunders said.
“I believe the [One Percent for Art Policy] is one of the best initiatives the administration has ever put in place,” said Audrey Tolbert ’13, one of the student representatives serving on the CAPP. “Even under the current suspension of these funds for the purchase of new works, the policy still forces us to take into consideration the visual environment we are curating on our campus.”
“So Inclined,” a public sculpture constructed by Patrick
Dougherty in 2007, was removed last year. The nine towering interconnected cones made of red maple saplings and grey dogwood branches sat at the entrance to the Kevin P. Maaney ’84 Center for the Arts. So Inclined was conceived as a temporary installation, and was intended to be removed once the structure became unstable.
The discussion regarding whether the CAPP’s madate to maintain campus art includes ensuring the presence of tem- porary art has been raised in recent CAPP meetings, following the removal of So Inclined.
If the replacement of now-removed temporary art counts as maintenance, then the CAPP might consider acquiring other temporary art to replace So Inclined regardless of the suspension of the One Percent policy, according to Saunders.
“Since art in public places is a part of the identity of the institution, they should represent different programs of the college,” said Pieter Broucke, professor of the history of art and architecture. “It will be nice if we have more arts that are internationally focused.”
Broucke mentioned that he incorporates a walking tour of campus art in public places for teaching purposes in some of his classes. “These are fabulous pieces that we can learn a lot from,” he said.
Eliza Garrison, professor of the history of art and architecture, said that while most students are aware of some of the art on campus, some pieces are more prominent than others.
“For example, ‘Smog’ near Bi Hall is probably being seen a lot by the science students, while the Joseph Beuys’ ‘7,000 Oaks’ right next to the [Axinn Center at Starr Library] isn’t even really easy to see,” Garrison said.
Due to the freezing of One Percent funds, studio art major Dylan Redford ’14 is looking for an alternative way to promote public arts on campus.
“The public art on campus is stuck in this stagnant state where students don’t recognize Middlebury’s public art as meaningful or intentional,” said Redford, who is also a member of the CAPP. “Most of us have learned to just ignore these public works. I would like to start placing more tempo- rary public art around campus that changes year after year, which would force students to recognize the works and be asked to evaluate its placement and meaning on campus.” Redford said he thinks the administration will reverse the suspension once the student body shows enough interest in public art.
Additional reporting by GABBY GUTMAN; design by OLIVIA ALLEN and MAREA HATHEWAY
(11/28/12 11:26pm)
On Nov. 6, the College announced its decision to suspend its school abroad in Xalapa, Mexico. The program, which was based at the Universidad Veracruzana in Xalapa, will not accept students from next semester onward, unless the decision to suspend the school is reversed. The suspension of the Mexico program eliminates the only Spanish language C.V. Starr School Abroad Latin American location in the Northern Hemisphere.
Acting Dean of International Programs Paul Monod cited low enrollment as the primary reason for closing the program. Only one student opted to study abroad in Mexico this academic year, and the program has seen an average of only 2.7 students per semester over the past eight semesters. For comparison, the Middlebury C.V. Starr School in Argentina sees an average of 18.375 students per semester and the school in Chile has an average of 15.5 students per semester. The College has decided that the few students who choose to study in Mexico are not enough to sustain the costs of the program.
Monod suggested that reports of drug-related violence in the region might have contributed to the program’s unpopularity.
“It's unfortunate to have to close any site abroad, but Mexico was a special case,” said Monod. “Reports of drug violence in that country have saturated the media in the United States, which seems to have discouraged students from applying for the program. There was no sign that this situation was going to change; in fact, it appears to have worsened in the last year or so.”
The Middlebury School Abroad in Guadalajara, Mexico was closed last year after reports of violence prompted the U.S. government to issue a travel warning, but the Xalapa program remained open as it was deemed safer.
Alan Sanders ’13.5, the only current student who studied abroad in Xalapa last spring, said that there was not significant violence in the area.
“There were police patrols, and that was the extent of the violence that I saw,” Sanders noted. “There were a couple of shootings while I was there but they were very much in isolated areas of the city that the school was not anywhere close to.”
While Spanish language students still have plenty of options in considering studying abroad locations — the College has programs in Spain, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay — there are certain drawbacks to eliminating the Mexico location. Mexico was the only Spanish-speaking Latin American country available to students at the College who wished to study abroad in the Northern Hemisphere. Universities in the Southern Hemisphere follow a different academic calendar, with the fall semester beginning at the beginning of August and the spring semester ending in the middle of July.
For students at the College who have summer obligations and jobs back in the states, this calendar rules out locations like Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. Students in the international and global studies or international politics and economics majors, who are encouraged to focus on a specific region and are required to study abroad, now must travel to the Southern Hemisphere and adhere to that calendar if they choose to focus in Latin American studies.
Students studying Spanish and Latin American cultures still have many options available to them, and the Office of International Programs maintains that the there was nothing unique about the curriculum offered at Unversidad Veracruzana in Xalapa.
As an international and global studies major with a focus in anthropology, Sanders disagreed.
“The archeology program is really good, because they’re right in the middle of where the Olmec civilization used to be,” said Sanders. “So there’s a lot of archeological dig sites around the city and it’s a very culturally rich part of the world. So they have a lot of opportunities for anthropologists.”
Sanders expressed his disappointment upon hearing the news of the program’s suspension.
“I think that Mexico has such a vibrant culture that is misrepresented in the media in the United States,” Sanders added. “We share a 2,000 mile border and it’s so important to our politics, I think its really important that Middlebury students get past the rhetoric that is involved in political discussions around Mexico, and that’s really only accessible through living there. “
(11/28/12 7:10pm)
Just two weeks into regular season action, the 11th-placed Middlebury men’s hockey team has already seen its fair share of adversity. The now 2-1-1, 1-0-1 in the NESCAC, Panthers battled back from multiple deficits during their first weekend of play, Nov. 16 and 17, to defeat Colby 5-2 and tie Bowdoin 4-4 before suffering a last-second 5-4 loss at the hands of perennial rival Norwich, currently placed second, in the final of the PrimeLink Great Northern Shootout on Saturday, Nov. 24. Middlebury also defeated seventh-placed Plattsburgh 3-2 in the tournament semifinal last Friday to reach its first PrimeLink final since the 2008-2009 season.
In the PrimeLink tournament, hosted by Norwich, the Panthers’ opening-round game against the Cardinals offered some redemption for Middlebury, who was defeated 7-0 by Plattsburgh last January. Despite being down 1-0 at the end of the first period, Derek Pimentel ’15 connected in the second period on a rebound chance for his first goal of the year to tie the game at one. First-year Evan Neugold ’16 then converted a goal after shaking a Plattsburgh defender to push the score to 2-1. George Ordway ’15 sealed the game with a goal in the third period for Middlebury, who held on for a 3-2 win.
Coach Bill Beaney remarked on how his team gained confidence throughout the semifinal.
“We didn’t know how we would match up against a top-five team in the country,” said Beaney. “The first seven or eight minutes of the game were played at a pace that we were not used to, but fortunately we stayed with it and from the middle of the first period onwards I feel that we played as well as, if not better, than Plattsburgh. It was a statement and a confidence builder that we could play with one of the best teams in the country.”
The next day against Norwich, the Panthers found themselves trailing 2-1 late in the second period before Matthew Silcoff ’16, named Outstanding Rookie of the Tournament, scored his third of the season on the power play. Mike Longo ’14 then scored 42 seconds later to give the Panthers a 3-2 lead heading into the third.
After a scoreless run of play, Brendan McGovern ’16 scored at the 12:22 mark to extend Middlebury’s lead to 4-2. Unfortunately for the Panthers, a controversial holding penalty at the 13:51 mark saw the Cadets convert on a chance and subsequently head to the power play, a sequence Beaney described as a “perfect storm” in favor of Norwich.
The Cadets scored again in the dying moments of the power play to knot the contest at 4-4. Then, in the waning moments of the third period, Travis Janke of Norwich intercepted the puck and found Colin Mulvey, who scored his second goal in just under four minutes to clinch the PrimeLink title with 6.7 seconds left on the clock.
Despite the gut wrenching loss, Chris Brown ’13 says his team is looking forward.
“I think the PrimeLink Tourney gave us a great snapshot of where we are at this point in the year,” said Brown. “The loss was heartbreaking, but we’re going to take the positives out of this weekend and use it to get better. We’re happy with our effort, and I think we grew as a team big time this weekend. This group can really go somewhere, and our performance in the first four games has shown that.”
Beaney echoed his player’s remarks.
“Playing back-to-back nationally ranked teams was a huge challenge,” said Beaney. “The only way I could be happier is if we had won the game versus Norwich. Even after the game was tied at four, we had three good chances to score. One bounce of the puck and we could have won it. We will come out of this with a much better understanding of what to do to close games out like that.”
The previous weekend against Colby and Bowdoin, one of the biggest stories in the successful NESCAC contests was the emergence of a crop of first-year talent. Silcoff, Neugold and Riley Dickie ’16 all have three points or more after four games.
The form of the team’s younger players encourages both Beaney and Brown.
“I think that we all knew a huge part of our success this year would be dependent on how quickly the younger guys were able to step in and play a role, and the first two weekends have shown that they had no problem doing so,” said Brown. “They’ve been putting pucks in the net up front, and logging some heavy minutes in the back as well. Having four lines that the whole team really trusts out there in any situation is a huge advantage for us.”
“We generally don’t want first-years playing pivotal roles,” added Beaney. “However, these guys have stepped up in even strength, penalty-kill and power play, and when you can get point production it’s a bonus. The first-years have a lot to do with creating the competitive attitude that permeates the team right now.”
Middlebury opens its home schedule against Connecticut College and Tufts this weekend, Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, at 7 p.m. and 4 p.m., respectively, in front of what will be a raucous Kenyon Arena.
“I think this week will be interesting, how we practice and how we prepare,” said Beaney. “We need to be excited to play at home in the NESCAC.”
(11/28/12 7:07pm)
The Middlebury women’s basketball team started off the season with disappointment after a 66-61 overtime loss in the Tip-Off Classic against the University of Massachusetts- Boston on Saturday, Nov. 17. The Panthers, however, rebounded to win the consolation game against Colby-Sawyer 59-48. The team continued the season with a 80-47 loss against Smith on Tuesday, Nov. 20 and a 81-73 win against Plattsburgh on Sunday, Nov. 25.
“We are happy but not satisfied by our performances so far this season,” said co-captain Jesse Miller ’13. “We have faced some very good competition so far this season, which has been great to play against no matter the outcome. Every situation is a chance to improve and get one step closer to being the team that we aspire to be this season.”
In their first game of the season against UMass-Boston, the Panthers trailed at the beginning 16-9 before going on a 7-0 run to tie the game at 16-16. They extended the run to 12-1 after a basket from Katie Ritter ’15 gave the Panthers a 21-17 lead at 7:17. Unfortunately, Middlebury was unable to hold the lead after UMass-Boston finished the first half with a 30-25 lead.
After falling behind in the second half, Laura Lowry ’15 hit a three pointer to tie the game at 36-36 at the 14:16 mark. The score continued to yo-yo after Middlebury was able to erase the Beacons’ 10 point lead, when a jump-shot from Ritter tied the game at 52-52 with only 1:35 left to play. UMass-Boston managed to regain the lead with 45 seconds on the clock before a basket from Rachel Crews ’15 sent the game into overtime.
The Beacons went on an 8-0 run in the overtime period after Middlebury was unable to convert their shots and turned over the ball twice.
Three Middlebury players ended the game with double figures, led by Sarah Marcus ’14 who scored a game-high of 17 points. Ritter led the team with seven rebounds while Lowry had four assists.
After the disappointment of Saturday’s game, Middlebury came out strong against Colby-Sawyer. They took a 19-5 lead in the first 9:46 before the Chargers cut the lead to nine. However, Middlebury continued to push and went into the break with a 31-12 lead.
Colby-Sawyer was the more alert of the two teams at the beginning of the second half scoring 14 out of 19 points to cut the advantage to six at 34-28. While the Chargers came within three points on two occasions, Middlebury was able to hang on for its first win of the season.
Tracy Borsinger ’13 was the high scorer for the Panthers with 18 points and also claimed eight boards, while all-tournament team member Marcus was second with 14 points.
The Panthers went into their game against Smith looking to build on the momentum of the win against Colby-Sawyer. However, Middlebury was never really able to challenge the Pioneers.
Middlebury started off the game with a 4-0 lead, but the lead was their last of the game. The Pioneers responded with a 9-0 run after baskets from Rosa Drummond and Paulina Solis. Smith continued to increase their advantage and built their biggest lead of 41-17 after a layup from Bethany Clap, and went into the break with a 43-20 advantage.
The second half followed a similar pattern to the first after Smith opened the period with a 10-2 run. The Pioneers led by as much as 37 after another Solis layup went down.
The Panthers struggled on offense, sinking only two out of 11 long-range attempts. Ritter led the attack with nine points, while Borsinger finished with eight rebounds.
Middlebury was able to pick itself up after its loss at Smith, bouncing back with a comfortable win against Plattsburgh.
The Cardinals started off the stronger of teams, opening up the game with an 8-0 run, eventually extending their largest lead to 11-2 after a three-pointer by Brittany Marshall at 15:11.
Plattsburgh continued to dominate the rest of the half holding a 30-22 advantage with 1:07 remaining on the clock, before Marcus hit a pair of triples. Then Nora Kelly ’15 pounded through the Cardinal’s defence, downed a layup, and closed the gap to 32-30.
The Panthers continued to build on this momentum at the onset of the second half, beginning with an 8-0 run on a pair of triples from Lowry and a jumper from Borsinger. Middlebury increased the lead to as much as 10 points just five minutes into the half.
However, on the strength of an offensive surge from Marshall, who went on a 7-0 run at the 8:54 mark, the Cardinals found themselves in the lead for the first time since the halftime break. Their advantaged grew to 66-63 with 4:31 remaining.
But after the Panthers emerged from a key back-and-forth sequence with possession, Middlebury went on a 10-0 run to complete their comeback victory.
Marcus finished with 21 points while Borsinger had 20 points and seven assists.
The Panthers fell victim to a slow start against Castleton State, however, as Middlebury’s resurgence at the end of the game fell just short, as the Panthers fell 62-60 to the Spartans.
While Castleton built an early lead, the game yo-yoed back and forth as the Spartans built a seven-point lead before the Panthers cut it to two, 27-25, with 6:24 left. Castleton went into the break only a basket better than Middlebury, leading 32-30.
Castleton rallied at the start of the second half, however, extending their lead to 10 with a jumper by Alyssa Leonard. Their lead continued to fluctuate as a 4-0 Panther run brought the visitors within a basket at 57-55 with 3:35 remaining in the game. After the teams traded baskets, Scarlett Kirk ’14 again brought the Panthers within one point with just 41 seconds left. After a jumper from Castleton guard Kelly Conway, Kattie Ritter ’15 attempted a game-tying three with 12 seconds left, but the ball rimmed out.
Borsinger led the team with a game high of 25 points, while Katie Pett ’14 finished with eight rebounds, four assists and four steals.
While the Panthers have had an up-and-down start to the season, head coach Noreen Pecsok sees the opening games as a way to gauge her team’s strengths and set season-long goals.
“We have a lot of people who haven’t played a lot of minutes due to injury in the past, so right now we are figuring out who plays well together,” said Pecsok. “We believe all the things we need to get better at are within our grasp, so everyone is very positive.”
Marcus, echoing her coach’s sentiments stressed the importance of the team maintaining its defenisve intensity.
“This season, we want to be a disruptive, defensive team,” she said. “We want to make it as hard as possible for the other team to score, and if we play tough defense, it will give us energy to push the ball and get easy baskets in transition. I am extremely excited for the rest of the season, and if we continue to stay focused and play hard, good things will come.”
Middlebury returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 1 against Emmanuel.
(11/28/12 7:02pm)
Looking to build on a 16-9 finish from a year ago, the 14th-ranked Middlebury men’s squash team opened up its season at the M.I.T. Round Robin Tournament in Boston on Saturday, Nov. 17. The Panthers dismantled a trio of opponents, sweeping M.I.T. and Northeastern 9-0 while only dropping one match to NESCAC foe Wesleyan, the 23rd-ranked team in the country in an 8-1 win.
“It felt really good to get our first matches under our belt this season,” said Spencer Hurst ’13. “I think everyone was happy with how we played and now it’s time to keep the good performances rolling.”
Jay Dolan ’13 played in the top spot on the men’s team for the first time in his Middlebury career, defeating all of his opponents in straight sets. Dolan had no trouble in his match against M.I.T., taking down his Engineer opponent in straight sets: 11-7, 11-2 and 11-2. Against Wesleyan, Dolan won 11-7, 11-6 and 11-9. He followed that with another sweep against Northeastern winning the sets 11-5, 11-2 and 11-3. In fact, the Panther men won all but four of 27 matches in straight sets marking a dominant opening showing for the team.
In the women’s bracket at the M.I.T. tournament, meanwhile, the 11th-ranked women’s team managed a clean sweep with three 9-0 victories. Middlebury defeated Wellesley, Wesleyan and Northeastern. Sophomore Charlotte Dewey ’15 anchored the lineup for the women’s team, competing as the top seed for the first time in her Middlebury career. Dewey dropped just one set in her three matches — the only set lost by any member of the team. After convincing performances last week, both teams now sit at 3-0 in the early going with NESCAC play around the corner.
The men’s team hosts Navy and Drexel this Friday and Sunday while traveling to Dartmouth to play Bowdoin Saturday. The women, meanwhile, play just one match this weekend when they host Drexel on Sunday, Dec. 2.
While both squads have dominated their opposition, they will face tougher competition in the week ahead.
“Everyone played pretty well for our first matches,” said Parker Hurst ’14. “It was a solid way to start of the season but we are going to have a tough weekend with Navy, Bowdoin and Drexel.”
The match with Navy will mark the third time in two years the teams have met. The Panthers and the Midshipmen split the series last year as the Panthers won the regular season meeting 5-4 before Navy exacted its revenge, knocking Middlebury out of team nationals by the same score.
NESCAC play begins in earnest for both the men’s and women’s teams in the new year when both teams travel to Williamstown, Mass. for the Williams Round Robin Tournament on Jan. 5.
