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(02/17/11 5:09am)
The second half of the men’s hockey team’s season has certainly been prettier to watch than the first. The Panthers, coming off a pair of victories against UMASS-Boston and Babson this past weekend, are now 11-6-5 on the season with a 9-4-4 record in the NESCAC, putting them tied for first in the conference.
This impressive record is a result of a 7-1-2 run over the team’s last ten games, dating back a month ago to mid-January. This run has helped to erase the Panthers 4-5-3 sluggish start, and has breathed a new fire into the team’s postseason aspirations. Head coach Bill Beaney said that several factors have contributed to his team’s prolific rise in the standings.
“The group has really started to come together and realize individual roles in connection with overall team goals,” said Beaney. “Guys are much clearer with their own responsibilities, and as a result we are much more consistent day in and day out.”
The emergence of several key freshmen contributors has also amped up the team’s play. Louis Belisle ’14 now has seven goals on the year and Michael Longo ’14 has developed into one of the Panthers’ strongest players.
“Louis came to us with a reputation as a great competitor,” said Beaney. “He uses his speed to create opportunities and is also willing to be physical to win pucks for us. Meanwhile, Longo if you go by the stat book doesn’t show up a lot, but he has been the most consistent guy on our team since day one. Ben Wiggins ’14 has also been working hard for us, recently translating into some scoring.”
Belisle, Longo, and Wiggins all showed up on the score sheet against UMASS-Boston on Friday night.With John Yancheck ’12 between the pipes, the Panthers cruised to victory over UMASS-Boston in an ECAC-East conference matchup. Charlie Strauss ’12 scored his team-leading 11th goal of the year, assisted by Chaz Svoboda ’11, six minutes into the first frame. An unassisted tally coming from the aforementioned Belisle followed Strauss’ goal, with Longo later netting his second of the year, assisted by Martin Drolet ’11, to give the Panthers a 3-0 lead after one period.
Belisle added another goal, assisted by Wiggins, to push the lead to 4-0 eleven minutes into the second. Yancheck conceded his only goal two minutes into the third on a UMASS power play, leading the Panthers to a 4-1 win and notching his seventh win of the year.
Yancheck was again in the cage against Babson the following day, as the Beavers invaded Kenyon arena. Babson struck early in the first, scoring a power play goal a mere 1:30 into the first frame and forcing the Panthers to play from behind for the only time all weekend. The Panthers answered quickly, however, as Belisle got his seventh of the year three minutes later, assisted by Ken Suchoski ’11 and Robbie Donahoe ’14.
Suchoski scored his third goal of the year seven minutes in the second, assisted by Belisle and Mathieu Castonguay ’13, which proved to be the game’s final score at 2-1. Yancheck pushed his record to 8-1-4, solidifying himself as the team’s goalie heading into postseason play.
“It is important to know that the team has confidence in both Yancheck and Nick BonDurant ’14 at goalie,” said Beaney. “John has the experience and has found a way to win night in and night out this season. He will likely be our keeper down the stretch looking at the NESCAC tournament.”
This year’s edition of Panther men’s hockey has proven to be a resilient bunch, with the slow start ultimately not preventing them from being exactly where they wanted at this point in the year.
“As I said to the team the other night, if somebody had said that we’d be tied for first in the NESCAC with one weekend left to play,” said Beaney, “I would have said they were nuts!”
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Men’s hockey improves on a lackluster start to season
(02/17/11 5:08am)
On Sunday, the Middlebury College women’s squash team defeated Williams College for the second time in a seven days, shredding any doubt that the Panthers’ 6-3 victory over the Ephs in the NESCAC Team Championships two weeks ago was, in fact, an upset. By a narrow 5-4 margin, Middlebury eclipsed Williams last weekend in a match that came down to the wire, a treat for the hometown Panther fans.
Playing in its third home match of the season, the women’s team provided a showcase of clutch performances in front on a roaring crowd in the Bubble. Before tallying the fifth and decisive win, however, the women needed to overcome early setbacks of the order not experienced in the team’s previous win over Williams.
For the match, which began simultaneously with the men’s team’s match against Williams, Middlebury coach John Illig elected to use the College’s five courts in a variation of the three-court match play system. In playing two separate matches (men’s and women’s) according to the three-court rubric, Illig necessarily staggered the start times of the men’s and women’s numbers seven, eight, and nine. The architecture of Sunday’s match was different from the five-court format at the NESCAC Team Championships. It would take longer for the Panthers to record five match victories as a result.
First on court for Middlebury were Virginia Shannon ’11, Lindsay Becker ’13 and Katie Yates ’14, playing numbers three, six and nine, respectively. For the second time in a week, Shannon suffered a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Alli Rubin while first-year Yates once again notched a victory for the Panthers by a 3-0 margin, an improvement on her 3-1 victory in the players’ previous meeting two weekends ago.
Though the first two matches completed yielded results virtually identical from the teams’ previous matchup, Becker’s match ended with a dramatically different result. After beating Williams’ number six in a close five-game match in their first meeting, Becker fell to Kavitha Mannava in three games on Sunday. Following the first round of matches, Williams held a 2-1 advantage over Middlebury.
Abby Jenkins ’14, Molly Hubbard ’13 and Annie Ulrich ’13 took to the courts next at numbers two, five, and eight, respectively. Due to the aforementioned space restrictions, however, Ulrich needed to wait for the completion of the men’s number nine match before beginning her match.
Although Jenkins suffered a 3-0 loss, sending two games into win-by-two tiebreakers, Hubbard secured a second victory for the Panthers with a grueling five-game marathon match. Trailing two games to one, Hubbard rallied to a stunning 12-10 victory in the fourth game, sending the match to a decisive fifth game, which she won 11-6 over Hannah Kaemmer from Williams.
“The match was so close at that point and we were almost in a position where we needed to win all of the remaining matches,” said Shannon. “Molly’s match re-energized our team at a crucial moment and set the stage for our remaining victories.”
It did not take long to realize that Shannon’s statement was all too true. Shortly after Hubbard secured the Panthers’ second victory, Ulrich notched a four-game win at number eight in which she won the second game 12-10 after trailing 4-10 and having lost the first game. Ulrich’s effort received less attention than it probably should have, however, as a loss in the second game of her match would have made a victory at the number eight position extremely difficult. Coming back to win a match after trailing two games to zero — “love” in squash lexicon — is as rare as it is both physically and mentally taxing. Overcoming a six-point deficit when an opponent is just one point from winning a game is almost unheard of in squash.
With the final round of matches set to begin, Elena Laird ’11.5, Kathryn Bostwick ’12 and Amanda Chen ’14 needed to combine for two victories at their positions, numbers one, four, and seven, respectively, for the Panthers to win.
As Bostwick battled to a 3-1 victory, Laird played valiantly but lost by the same margin and with the overall match now tied 4-4, first-year Chen would once again play a decisive role in the newfound Middlebury-Williams women’s squash rivalry.
Ahead two games to love, Chen nearly sealed the match for Middlebury with a 10-9 match point in the third game. A combination of an unreachable lob by her Williams opponent and perhaps some rookie nerves undid Chen’s bid for a clean sweep as Eliana Saltzman, her opponent, took the game 12-10.
The match’s third and fourth games reflected a competitiveness lacking in the first two games, which Chen won easily, 11-6 and 11-1, respectively. In a back-and-forth battle, the Middlebury first-year finally heard the crowd in the Bubble exhale collectively, winning the decisive fourth game 11-9. As she left the court, Chen’s teammates swarmed her in a group hug not seen in the Bubble in years.
“I felt relieved and happy [after the match]” Chen said. “I felt a lot of pressure during the match but I didn’t want to show it. Ultimately, we established that we can beat Williams and I was happy to be a part of the win.”
Chen’s teammates were equally thrilled with the unprecedented victory. “The depth of our team was critical in the overall win against Williams,” Shannon observed. “Without winning the top positions, we proved that we can get wins from anywhere on the ladder.”
The Panthers will head to Princeton, NJ, this weekend to compete in the National Championship’s B-Flight. Tenth-ranked Middlebury will likely face #15 Mount Holyoke College, a team the women beat 7-2 in January.
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Women’s squash falls in NESCAC championship
(02/17/11 5:04am)
The Panther men played at home this weekend and had yet another great weekend on the squash court, winning three out of the five matches they played. The Middlebury men started the weekend off against ninth ranked Dartmouth, who proved to be a formidable match for the Panthers. The men fell 9-0 but rallied and came back strong when they played UVM, taking them down 8 to 1. The men continued on strong to beat Bard College 9-0, and despite losing to Williams 7-2, they once again beat University of Vermont 8-1. This was a challenging line up for the Panthers, but they were able to rise to the occasion and demonstrate their skill and depth against every team they played.
Parker Hurst ’14 and Addi DiSesa ’12 had a great weekend, breaking through the purple wall for Middlebury in bringing the men’s squash team its first ever victories against Williams in their individual matches. DiSesa commented on this amazing victory for the Middlebury men and its implications for the future.
“In all likelihood we will play Williams again in two weeks in the first round of the College Squash Association nationals at Harvard. “When we play them again, I am sure that our confidence level will be much higher than it was heading into Sunday’s match.” DiSesa said.
“As I mentioned earlier, our team has improved each time out. I don’t expect our next match will be any different. We can do some really great things this season. In many ways, this has been the best men’s squash season ever for Middlebury. It’s truly an honor and privilege to be a part of it.”
Parker ’14 also had an incredible match against Dartmouth’s third ranked player, dragging the game out to five matches before ultimately falling. Valentin Quan ’11, Middlebury’s number one on the ladder, also had a great weekend, and played a great match against Williams, drawing it out to five games before losing.
Other notable matches include victories by Will Piekos ’11, Reeve Waud ’13, Mark Sorrentino ’11, Phillip Goldstein ’14, Dan Prior ’14, Maurtis Pot ’11, Nick Seshadri ’14, Chris Ivsin ’13 and JP Garafalo ’12.
The men’s squash team is only going to get better in coming years, if this year has been any indication of what is to come. Some really incredible matches this weekend and in weekends past were played by the sophomore and first-year members. Many of the players who led Middlebury to a double victory over UVM and the victory over Bard College this past weekend were first-years or sophomores.
Coach John Illig has high hopes for his team going forward, “The men’s team is playing well, is injury-free and is peaking at just the right time. We’ve had a great season, and we’re looking forward to Team Nationals.”
The men’s squash team will play at Team nationals two weekends from now, February 25th-27th at Harvard University.
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Men’s squash earns best finish to date in NESCAC tournament
(02/17/11 5:03am)
The women’s hockey team hosted then third-ranked Plattsburgh on Tuesday. Riding a seven-game winning streak in which they had allowed just three goals, the Panthers overcame their struggles against Plattsburgh, beating the Cardinals for the first time since the 2006 National Championship game.
Middlebury was winless against the Cardinals in their previous 10 games (0-7-3). Senior goaltender Alexi Bloom ’11 made 20 saves in the game and led the Panthers to their 10th shutout victory of the season. Her performance earned her the NESCAC player of the week, the second time she’s been honored with the award this season.
The Panthers and Cardinals combined for 12 shots in a goalless first period, but after nearly 40 minutes of scoreless hockey the Panthers capitalized on a mistake made by Plattsburgh goaltender Mandy Mackrell ’11 who was unable to control the shot of Lauren Greer ’13 who came away with the game’s only goal with less than a minute remaining in the second period. The goal was Greer’s seventh of the season and was assisted on the play by Julia Ireland ’11. Greer and Ireland maintained their spots atop the Panthers scoring leaders. For Ireland the assist was her sixth of the year and was her18th point of the season. Greer meanwhile has 10 assists along with her seven goals for 17 points on the season. Bloom made eight saves in the final period as the Panthers closed the door on a 1-0 win over the Cardinals.
This win came in stark contrast to the last time the Panthers and the Cardinal faced off, which ended in a 5-0 loss for the Panthers. Following that loss on January 3rd the Panthers are 10-1-1 and have allowed just six total goals in all the games during that time.
“This game was very different than the one back in January,” said Bloom. “We came out a completely different team, and I think we can contribute it to our success in the last month. All we needed to do was to build up some confidence. Once you can convince yourself that you are capable of winning, anything is possible.”
The Panthers have been led by the play of Bloom who leads all of Division III women’s hockey in save percentage, shutouts and goals allowed. Tuesday she improved her save percentage to an astounding .958 on the season.
“Lexi continues to play very well,” said head coach Bill Mandigo. “She exudes confidence, and it has an effect on all of her teammates. I thought Madison Styrbicki [’13] played very well too.”
The defensive play of the Panthers was also drastically improved in their second meeting with the Cardinals. In the first meeting, Plattsburgh pounded 48 shots on net. Tuesday the Panthers limited their SUNY rivals to just 20 shots. Now allowing less than a goal per game, the Panthers defensive unit currently ranks as the second best in Division III women’s hockey.
While this win draws immediate comparisons between this team and the 2006 National Championship team as the last two teams to beat Plattsburgh, Bill Mandigo put the win in perspective.
“We like to play good teams to measure how much we have improved,” he said. “We are very happy with the win, but there are still three important games remaining in the regular schedule.”
The fourth-ranked Panthers will have their work cut out for them as their regular season comes to its close. Middlebury hosts third-ranked Norwich on Tuesday and then travels to Colby and Bowdoin this weekend to finish the regular season.
Bloom and the Panthers will have their hands full with the second-ranked scoring offense in the country on Tuesday. Norwich scores 4.91 goals per game, trailing only RIT in that category. The Cadets are led by senior forward Sophie Leclerc who leads the nation (D-III) in total points.
“This will be our toughest week of the season,” said Bloom. “Norwich is a great team, and they will come after us harder than Plattsburgh. Then we’ll head up to Maine, which is one of the toughest weekends travel-wise. Nothing is promised from here on out, and we’ll really need to earn every win.”
Both Middlebury and Norwich (18-3-1) bring eight game winning streaks into their matchup Tuesday. The Panthers and Cadets drew 2-2 last year.
Women's Hockey
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Panthers hockey shuts down Camels, tallying ninth shutout of the season
(02/10/11 5:07am)
Even though the Middlebury men’s basketball team’s record-breaking run came to an end at the hands of rival Williams over February break, the Panthers remained hard at work, improving their record to 18-1 (6-1 in conference play) while continuing to be a dominant offensive and defensive force in the NESCAC.
While the Ephs did hand Middlebury their first loss of the season, it was not before the team extended its historic run to 16-0 with victories over Connecticut College and Southern Vermont.
First, Middlebury defended its streak at home against Conn. College in a dominant fashion, defeating the Camels 80-52 while extending its streak to 15-0. Center Andrew Locke ’11 led the Panthers with a career best 18 rebounds while adding 19 points, including 10 of Middlebury’s first 13 in the second half, and seven blocked shots.
The Panthers held a 12-point advantage at the end of the first half, one that they would only expand upon by the end of regulation. Ryan Wholey added 17 points for Middlebury while shooting 7 of 8 from the field. The Panthers again showed a tenacity on the defense side of the ball, holding the Camels to just 33 percent field goal shooting.
Next, Middlebury rolled past Southern Vermont, 81-63, in what would prove to be their final victory of the record-breaking run, improving to 16-0. The Panthers combined incredible shooting, making 55 percent of their attempts, and the defensive dominance that has come to characterize the team to control the Mountaineers despite an impressive 33-point effort from Southern Vermont’s Lance Spratling.
Already leading 46-24 at halftime, the Panthers opened the second period with a 9-0 run giving the team enough of a cushion to hold off a late 17-3 run by the Mountaineers. Ten different Panthers scored points in the game with Jake Wolfin ’13 and Locke leading the pack, scoring 16 and 13 respectively.
Just two days after extending their streak to 16-0, the fourth-ranked Panthers, playing without leading scorer and rebounder Ryan Sharry, saw their streak come to an end, dropping to 16-1 on the season while losing to the fifth-ranked Ephs 69-64 in an incredibly hard-fought game by both teams. Trailing by nine at half-time, the Panthers opened up the second period on a 10-0 run gaining a 40-39 advantage. From then on, the game was an all out battle with the score tied on 11 separate occasions.
Trailing 68-64 late in regulation, Joey Kizel ’14 had the ball stripped from him on a play that looked like it was going out of bounds. However, with just four seconds left on the game, Williams’ Harlan Dodson slid across the floor, gaining control of the ball and successfully calling a timeout just inches from the out of bounds line.
The Eph’s Troy Whittington would go on to hit one of two free throws, giving William’s the 69-64 advantage the team would end with. Four players, led by James Klemm’s 17, scored in double figures for the Ephs, who shot over 55 percent from the floor. Kizel led the Panthers with 16 points while Wolfin added 13.
However, Middlebury’s first loss did little to discourage the team as just a week later the Panthers blew past NESCAC rivals Colby and Bowdoin in consecutive games, defeating the teams 73-52 and 74-59 respectively, improving to 18-1 on the season and 6-1 in NESCAC play.
Ryan Sharry had a double-double against Colby in his first game back from injury, scoring 12 points while grabbing 12 rebounds while four players, led by Jake Wolfin’s 14, scored in double figures against Bowdoin.
With three regular season games left, and only one loss on the season to date, the Panthers will undoubtedly enter the postseason with high expectations for success in the NESCAC tournament and a hopeful bid in the NCAA tournament. After demolishing last season’s record-setting 10-game winning streak, this year’s team can only hope to outdo last year’s once more by advancing further into NCAA play than its predecessor did.
Middlebury next plays Amherst and Trinity at Pepin Gymnasium while beginning to prepare for the upcoming postseason.
(02/10/11 5:05am)
The Middlebury College Women’s basketball team ended a four-game losing streak on Monday, defeating the Albany College of Pharmacy 74-64 at Pepin Arena. The win improved the Panthers’ record to 13-7 on the season, but they remain a mere 2-5 in NESCAC play.
The win helped Middlebury bounce back from a tough weekend of conference play, in which they lost consecutive road games to Colby and Bowdoin by at least 20 points. On Friday the Panthers traveled to Colby, where they faced a Mules team with a decided size advantage.
Trailing 40-28 at halftime, Middlebury saw the Colby lead balloon and were never able to get back in the game, falling by an eventual score of 81-60. Colby was nearly unstoppable from the field, shooting 57 percent on the game overall and 60 percent from behind the three-point line. Scarlett Kirk ’14 led the Panthers with 13 points in the game, and Stephany Surrette ’12 and Tracy Borsinger ’13 both added 10 points for Middlebury.
The Panthers continued their tour of Maine the next day with a game at Bowdoin. In a game that was never close, Middlebury fell by 33 points to a Polar Bears team that they have not beaten since the 1998-99 season.
As they had against Colby, Middlebury had a hard time stopping Bowdoin on the defensive end, allowing the Polar Bears to shoot 56 percent from the field. Conversely, the Panthers were only able to manage a 34 percent field goal percentage, and only hit one of the 13 three-point baskets they attempted on the day. Middlebury trailed by 27 points at halftime and never recovered, falling behind by 35 at one point in the second half and losing by a final score of 93-60.
The loss was the Panthers’ worst on the season so far. For the second consecutive day, Kirk paced Middlebury in the points column, scoring 15. Co-captain Lauren Sanchez ’11 added 12 points in the loss.
The Panthers were finally able to stop the slide on Monday, when they defeated the Albany College of Pharmacy by a score of 74-64. The Panthers were able to create a 19 point lead early in the second half and never looked back on their way to their 13th victory of the season. Borsinger scored a career high 19 points in the win, and Surrette also placed in double-figures with 13 points.
The Panthers remain confident that they are well-prepared to be a factor in the NESCAC playoffs. “We’ve faced some very talented NESCAC teams,” said Sanchez. “Going forward, we’re going to make sure we play Middlebury basketball for all 40 minutes of our games.”
Middlebury will close out their season with three straight NESCAC games which will have huge implications on their seeding for the NESCAC tournament in two weeks.
This weekend the Panthers will take on top-ranked Amherst and then play Trinity in a Senior Night match-up before facing Hamilton in a make-up game at Pepin Arena in their regular-season finale. The Panthers’ recent struggles are in direct contrast to the way they started the season, which had been their best start in years. With a strong finish, Middlebury can still put themselves in a good position to make a deep run into the conference tournament.
(02/10/11 5:02am)
Feb. 17- Green Eden - This original play is the senior playwriting work of Noah Mease ’11. In it, Philip Cummings welcomes a young poet to his house on a winter’s night, but he is not the first Spanish poet to find him in the solitude of Vermont. Years earlier, Summer 1929, the famous poet Federico Garcia Lorca visits a young Philip Cummings at a rented cabin beside Lake Eden. Sasha Rivera ’12 directs, and it stars Matt Ball ‘14, Willy McKay ‘11 and April Dodd ‘13.
Mar. 18 - Big Action Performance Ensemble (Big APE) - In reaction to dance competition reality shows that evaluate who is qualified to dance, Big APE presents Everyone Can Dance, a community-based performance project that celebrates the contagious allure of movement and the dynamic capabilities of the human body. Come see the performance take shape at several open rehearsals: Saturdays from 2:30–5:30 p.m. in the Dance Theatre: 2/12, 2/26, 3/5, and 3/12. And then check out the culminating performance, Friday and Saturday (18 & 19) at 8:00 P.M. in the Town Hall Theater. Tickets are $24/18/6.
Apr. 7 - Eurydice - One of this spring’s faculty shows is directed by Alex Draper ’88. The play, by award-winning playwright Sarah Ruhl, weaves a dreamlike retelling of the Orpheus myth. A story of love, loss and the mystery of death, from the author of The Clean House, Passion Play and Dead Man’s Cell Phone. The New York Times called it “a tenderhearted comedy, weird and wonderful, devastatingly lovely.” From April 7-9, it will run 8:00 P.M. each evening, plus 2:00 P.M. on Saturday only in the Seeler Studio Theatre. Tickets are $10/8/6 and will go on sale on March 14.
Apr. 28 - Victory - This spring’s other faculty show, directed by Richard Romagnoli, takes place in 1660: Britain’s brief experiment with republicanism ends, and the monarchy is restored. As Charles II returns to the now-powerless throne, the wife of one of the former republican leaders sets out to recover the pieces of her husband’s body, which has been dug up and exhibited on the orders of the new king. Howard Barker’s blistering analysis of a failed regime interweaves the national, political and intensely personal to study the life-shattering effects of fundamental change. Tickets are $10/8/6 and will go on sale on April 11.
May 6 - Middlebury Bach Festival - The first of its kind, this festival seeks to further the appreciation of the music, life and work of Johann Sebastian Bach by providing College and community audiences with three days of performances and informative workshops culminating in an exciting concert in Mead Chapel at the College on Saturday, May 7 at 8:00 P.M. The opening of the festival will be celebrated on Friday, May 6 at 7:00 P.M. with a gala event at Edgewater Gallery in Middlebury, and on Sunday, May 8, performances of Bach’s will take place throughout Middlebury.
(02/10/11 5:02am)
After suffering the program’s first defeat in school history to Wesleyan three weekends ago, the men’s hockey team has rebounded onto the winning track. Going 5-1-1 in its last seven contests, the Panthers have now soared to a 9-6-4 record on the season, placing them second in the NESCAC (7-4-3 in conference) and well within cracking the Division III top-15 poll.
“The Wesleyan loss at home was certainly a wake-up call for our team. Up until that point in the season, we had really not played well at all in games or practices,” said assistant Coach John Dawson. “It took us a while to figure out that last year has no impact on games this year, and only through hard work and consistent preparation were we going to get the results.”
After the loss to Wesleyan, the Panthers defeated New England College and St. Anselm at home before travelling to Maine to add two NESCAC victories against Bowdoin and Colby. A close loss at #12 Plattsburgh then set up the Panthers for a showdown with two Vermont opponents this past weekend.
The team travelled to face a pair of perennial in-state rivals in #4 ranked Norwich on Friday and St. Michael’s College on Saturday. Last season, the Cadets of Norwich handed Middlebury a 3-1 loss on home ice, which gave the Panthers extra incentive to get back in the win column of this historic rivalry.
“That game over there was a great college hockey game. The rink was jam packed and the atmosphere in the building was fantastic,” said Dawson. While the team was unable to push past Norwich for the victory in front of a capacity crowd at Kreitzberg Arena, a 4-4 tie with the Cadets on the road was far from failure.
Norwich opened the scoring at the 13-minute mark of the first period with Kyle Thomas beating Middlebury’s John Yancheck ’12. Middlebury answered on the power play five minutes later, with Charlie Strauss ’12 netting his ninth of the season with an assist from Michael Longo ’14.
J.D. Vermette ‘14 scored twice in forty seconds for the Panthers in the second period’s fifth minute to give the Panthers a two-goal lead, with assists from Strauss, Louis Belisle ’14, and Chris Steele ’13. However, Thomas answered for Norwich almost a minute after, and later added his hat trick goal on a Cadet power play at the 19-minute mark to tie the game at three.
In the third, Norwich pulled ahead 4-3 around four minutes in. Down late in the third, Ben Wiggins ‘14 then tallied his first goal of the season for Middlebury, with an assist from Vermette, with seven minutes left in regulation. Unable to break the deadlock in regulation or OT, the teams skated to a tie, with goalie Yancheck pushing his record to 6-1-3 on the season.
“We were disappointed in the tie because we had chances to win, but we were pleased with our overall effort level and how we dealt with some of the adversity,” said Dawson.
The Panthers matchup with St. Michael’s proved to be less of a test for the squad, although St. Michael’s hung around until early in the third period despite the Panthers outshooting them 42-13.
The Panthers jumped out to an early lead when Wiggins, assisted by Charles Nerbak ’12, picked up where he left off by scoring 2:14 into the game. Strauss then reached the ten-goal milestone eight minutes later on a breakaway. St. Michael’s pushed the game to 2-1 in the fifteenth minute before Martin Drolet ’12 buried a third-chance rebound for his ninth of the year.
St. Michael’s added two goals in the second to tie the game at 3-3, prompting the switch of goaltenders from Yancheck to Nick BonDurant ’14. Middlebury buried the Knights in the third period with a goal from Drolet a mere eight seconds into the frame. Mathieu Dubuc ’13, assisted by Strauss and Tucker Donahoe ’12, scored his fifth of the year at 12:02 to solidify the final at 5-3. Bondurant’s record in goal now stands at 3-4-1.
The Panthers will open a four game home stand to end the regular season starting with Williams and UMASS-Boston this week, before the NESCAC tournament begins February.
(02/10/11 5:00am)
A capella concert
Feb. 11, 7:30 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Come hear the University of Vermont a capella group, the Top Cats, perform. The entertaining evening will take place at the Mount Abraham Union High School auditorium. Tickets are $5 for students and seniors and $10 for adults. There is babysitting available, as well.
Cabin Fever Stories
Feb. 12, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.
The Henry Sheldon Museum, the Ilsley Public Library and the Vermont Folklife Center have teamed up for a unique series of presentations, free of charge, to be held at the library. “Live biographical books,” local Vermonters wanting to tell their stories, have volunteered to be “checked out” and to converse with other residents. The talk is entitled “Living Library.” Call the museum at (802) 388-2117, the library at (802) 388-4095 or the folklife center at (802) 388-4964 for more information.
Chocolate galore
Feb. 12, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Friends of the New Haven Community Library are hosting an exclusive, snazzy evening for couples. The event, which will be held in the Beeman Elementary School cafeteria, includes horse-drawn carriage rides and chocolaty treats. For more information call (802) 453-4015. The evening costs $8 per person and there is also a $10 takeout charge.
Valentine’s Day dance
Feb. 12, 8 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Come share the love! Musical group, The Hitmen, will perform at the Vergennes Opera House for lovers struck by Cupid’s arrow. Tickets are $20 per person and $30 per couple. For more information, call the Opera House at (802) 877-6737 or send an email to info@vergennesoperahouse.org. In addition to music, there will ba a cash bar, snacks and a raffle.
Breakfast for all
Feb. 13, 8 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Eggs and bacon and sausage, oh my! The Orwell Town Hall hosts a breakfast extravaganza, with hash browns, home fries, pancakes, French toast, sausage gravy and biscuits. Email jtester22@aol.com for more information or call (802) 948-2841. All proceeds go to the Independent Lodge No. 10 Free & Accepted Masons of Orwell.
Salisbury concert
Feb. 13, 1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
The Shard Villa, is hosting the band, the Ridge Runners, as part of its monthly concert series. A grant from Neat Repeats in Middlebury made this event possible.
Enrichment program
Feb. 20, 2 p.m.
Come to the Ethan Allan Homestead in Burlington for a talk entitled, “Chimney Point: What Lies Beneath.” Site administrator for the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation at Chimney Point State, Elsa Gilbertson, plans to discuss the land’s history, tracing back to 9,000 years ago when the first humans roamed the area. Call (802) 865-4556 for more information, as the talk will also feature the findings from last winter and summer’s Lake Champlain Bridge project.
(01/20/11 5:25am)
Not even a 13-point road deficit to a rival school could stop the Middlebury men’s basketball team from continuing its historic run over the weekend. With a 79-63 road win over Tufts and 78-65 victory at Bates, the Panthers find themselves 13-0 for the first time in school history.
A week after setting the school record for victories without a loss against Lyndon State, Middlebury (13-0) began NESCAC play in a tight first-half struggle with the Jumbos (6-7). While the Panthers struck first, starting off with an 8-2 lead, Tufts controlled the rest of the half due in large part to a 26-9 run that spanned nearly eight and a half minutes. Tufts guard Alex Goldfarb led the run, nailing three 3-pointers and leading all scorers with 13 points at halftime.
With four minutes left in the half, the Panthers cut the deficit to 36-30. However, a late Tufts run, again led by Goldfarb, saw the team score the last seven points of the period giving the Jumbos a 13 point half-time lead.
“Tufts came out and played a great first half,” said guard Jake Wolfin ’13.
With their historic run in jeopardy, the Panthers recollected themselves to begin the second half, going back to the fundamentals that helped them begin the run.
“At halftime, coach Jeff Brown reinforced the fact that we still had a whole half to play,” said Wolfin. “We had to take the game one play at a time.”
Beginning with a 12-3 run four minutes into the second period, the Panthers cut the lead to six with 15 minutes left in regulation. Tufts held on to the marginal lead until a three-point play by Wolfin tied the contest at 54 with 10 minutes left in the period.
From that point on, the Panthers used their outstanding shooting and strangling defense to take over the game, producing a 31-point swing over the course of just 18 minutes, including a 17-0 run in the middle of the second half. Middlebury shot 65 percent from the floor in the final period, including five for six from three-point range. Sophomore Nolan Thompson ’13 led all scorers with a career-high 28 points, 18 of which came in the second-half comeback. Senior Captain Andrew Locke ’11 dominated the defensive side of the ball, with eight rebounds and six blocks.
Just a day after the Tufts comeback, the Panthers traveled to Bates, successfully defending their winning streak and opening up NESAC play 2-0 with 78-65 a win over the Bobcats. The Panthers continued their unbelievable shooting percentage, knocking down nearly 60 percent of their field goals and shooting 44 percent from behind the three point line. Thanks to sharp shooting from Thompson, the Panthers gained a 10-point first half lead that they would hold on to until the final buzzer sounded.
The Panthers held off great performances by Bobcats Brian Ellis and Alex Gallant, who combined for 41 points. Coming off his career high scoring effort at Tufts, Thompson again led all Middlebury scorers with 22 points, going eight for 12 from the field. Forward Ryan Sharry ’12 also contributed to the Panther victory, scoring 12 points while nabbing nine rebounds.
This weekend, the Panthers defend their streak at Hamilton, hoping to continue their historic run and establish themselves as a NESCAC powerhouse.
(01/20/11 5:22am)
The ninth-ranked Middlebury Panthers traveled to fifth-ranked Amherst this past weekend to continue a rivalry that has become one of the best in women’s college hockey. The Panthers won the first game of the weekend doubleheader 3-0 over the Lord Jeffs. Though the Panthers lead the all-time series 20-6-4, it was just their second win of the past 12 games with Amherst. After two scoreless periods the Panthers skated a dominant third period.
They outshot the Lord Jeffs 21-4 over the final 20 minutes, finding the back of the net three times. Senior goaltender Alexi Bloom ’11 made all 27 saves in the game, which saw the Lord Jeffs drop their first home contest after a 17-game unbeaten streak. Middlebury bookends the streak, beating the Jeffs 4-3 at Amherst in the NESCAC playoffs during the ’08 –’09 season and again on Friday. In between the two losses to the Panthers the Lord Jeffs were 14-0-3 at home.
Despite being outshot 23-10 over the first two periods on Friday night, the Panthers kept Amherst off the scoreboard before controlling a decisive third period.
“We felt like true underdogs who had something to prove,” said Bloom. “We were flat-footed through most of the game and were lucky that Amherst was not able to capitalize on many scoring opportunities. The ice looked slanted in the third period. Our offense picked up and Amherst was unable to get the puck out of their zone.”
First-year forward Sara Ugalde ’14 ended the scoreless draw 5:35 into the third period with her team-high fourth goal of the season. She was assisted on the play by Jamie Harisiades ’12 and Grace Waters ’12. Less than seven minutes later fellow first-year Jennifer Krakower ’14 expanded the Middlebury lead to 2-0 and netted her first goal of the season, with Lauren Greer ’13 providing the assist. The win was capped by an empty-net goal from Maggie Woodward ’13 with less than a second left to play, completing the resounding Middlebury win.
The Lord Jeffs bounced back the next day however, winning the second game 2-1 to split the regular season series. Amherst outshot the Panthers 27-16 in the revenge match and took advantage of two power-play opportunities in the second and third periods to edge the Panthers 2-1.
Ashley Salerno ended a scoring drought of more than 100 minutes for the Lord Jeffs when she beat Lexi Bloom ’11 7:48 into the second period on an Amherst power-play. The Panthers responded quickly though, as Greer scored the equalizer later in the period. Julia Ireland ’11 and Madison Styrbicki ’13 recorded assists on the play. The Lord Jeffs proved to be too strong in the third period however, scoring the winning goal in another advantage situation with just under four minutes remaining in the game.
“There were hints of the team from the night before,” said Bloom, “but Amherst was out for revenge and it showed all over the ice. We did not win battles to pucks, and penalties were not being called in our favor.”
“It is difficult playing a team back-to-back,” said head coach Bill Mandigo. “The team that loses the first game plays harder the second game. Amherst came out the first period in both games and really took it to us. We played better as the games went on, but need to find a way to log 60 minutes of good hockey.”
Though the Panthers undoubtedly wished to return home unbeaten, their play this weekend demonstrates the potential that this team has and validates their early season success.
“We know who we are, what our roles are, and what we are capable of,” said Bloom. “This weekend I think we really proved to ourselves the level we are capable of playing. Our goal is to play a full 60 minutes, and we have yet to reach this. I think this weekend showed that if everyone shows up to play a full game, we will be unstoppable.”
The Panthers will have the opportunities to live up to these expectations when they travel to Williams this Saturday.
(01/20/11 5:20am)
The Middlebury men’s squash team had another great weekend. On Jan. 15 and 16 they faced off against Amherst –– ranked 19th, Hobart –– ranked 25th –– and Hamilton –– ranked 21st. The Panthers are ranked 17th. The Panther’s winning streak continues with their third, fourth and fifth wins this weekend. They are well on their way to matching their record-breaking record last season of 20 wins and only seven losses. The Middlebury men did an amazing job individually as well, winning 26 out of 27 matches. In years past, the matches against these teams were much closer than this year, indicative of the gains the Panthers have made on the court.
On Saturday, Middlebury started the day playing against Amherst, and the Panthers won 8-1. Last year when Middlebury played Amherst, they had a much closer game and won 5-4 twice, and 7-2 once. Jay Dolan ’13, Parker Hurst ’14, Brian Cady ’11, Spencer Hurst ’13, Cooper Redpath ’14, Addi Disesa ’12, Valentin Quan ’12 and Will Moore ’14 won their respective matches. Also playing in the top nine was Chris Ivsin ’14. Exhibition players Trevor Truog ’14 and Will Piekos ’11 also won their matches against Amherst.
The Panthers played Hobart on Saturday as well, winning easily 9-0. Last year, in another close game, they won 6-3. The entire ladder won their matches, as well as the Panthers’ exhibition player, Piekos.
On Sunday morning, Middlebury defeated Hamilton, once again winning all nine matches and sweeping their opponents. Last year, Middlebury played Hamilton twice, winning 7-2 each time. Dolan, Hurst, Cady, Hurst, Redpath, Disesa, Ivsin, Quan and Truog all won their matches against Hamilton. Piekos won another exhibition match. Reeve Waud ’13 also played an exhibition match, but fell to Hamilton’s Munschauer.
In all three games, the top nine men included several freshman. The rookie players won many of their matches, contributing to the Middlebury victories. Women’s team teammate, Molly Hubbard ’13, commented, “The men’s team did a great job this weekend. They have a really young team, the freshman men really played well.” Coming up next weekend, the men’s team will see Bates, George Washington, Brown, and Mt. Holyoke.
(01/20/11 5:19am)
The Middlebury women’s basketball team hit a bit of a rough patch to open conference play last weekend, falling on the road to both Tufts and Bates by double digits. The losses dropped their record to 9-3 overall, and an unexpected 0-2 in NESCAC play following a very strong start to the season.
“The weekend was tough, but we were able to identify a few key things that we can take forward going into the rest of conference play,” said co-captain Lauren Sanchez ’11.
The Panthers opened conference play against Tufts last Friday. Tufts went up by three after a 17-17 tie in the middle of the first half and would not trail for the remainder of the game. The Jumbos led 31-26 at halftime.
Middlebury was able to keep the game close towards the beginning of the second half, but Tufts eventually started to pull away in the final 10 minutes of the game. Middlebury trailed by 23 at one point, the largest deficit they have faced all season, and went on to lose by a final score of 70-54. Maddie Moreau ’12 and Sanchez ’11 were the high scorers for the Panthers, as both would finish with 12 points on the night. Middlebury shot a paltry 39 percent on the evening from the floor.
The next day took the Panthers to Maine for a NESCAC matchup against Bates College. In a game that was strikingly similar to the Tufts contest, Middlebury would keep it close until midway through the second half, when a Bates run all but sealed the game for the Bobcats.
Middlebury trailed Bates for most of the first half due to poor shooting, but caught fire towards the end of the first 20 minutes, cutting what had been an 8-point deficit to a more manageable 35-30 halftime score.
As they did against Tufts the previous day, the Panthers managed to hang around at the start of the second half, but the Bobcats used two key second half runs to put the game away for good. Bates used a 10-2 run to go ahead by 11 points with 15 minutes remaining, then stuck the dagger right into the heart of Middlebury’s comeback hopes with a 15-5 run that started at the 10 minute mark of the half and had them leading by a margin of 67-51 with four minutes to play.
Bates would go on to win by a final score of 72-58. Sanchez led all Middlebury scorers with 13 points, and Moreau and Katie Petit ’14 both hit double figures, scoring 11. The Panthers shot an even worse field goal percentage against Bates than they had against Tufts, hitting only 31 percent of their shots, including only four of the sixteen three-point attempts they took on the night.
The Panthers will look to rebound from this tough weekend and turn their fortunes around in NESCAC play when they take on two conference rivals at home in Pepin Arena. First up is bottom-feeding Wesleyan on Friday night. The Cardinals are currently tied for last place in the league and have the worst overall record, 6-8. Following the Wesleyan matchup is a game against Connecticut College, who is experiencing similar on-court woes, also tied for last and with an overall record of 7-8.
“The team is focusing on Wesleyan and Conn. College in order to get back on track from the tough losses last weekend,” said Sanchez.
(01/13/11 7:22pm)
Top 10 Films of 2010
Simran Bhalla:
The annual moment for our greatest cultural argument — the cause of many divorces and probably some religious schisms — is here: the Top 10 movie list. My judgment is admittedly insignificant (though I imagine my recommendation for Black Swan will send legions racing to the theater) and it is subject to mood and moment. It may say something about the state of cinema today that I found it difficult to think of 10 movies that deserved a Top 10 distinction, but it may also say something about which movies garner the attention of a few important critics and producers, and thus, our viewership. So, tentatively, and only kind of in order, my Top 10:
11) A Single Man: This honorary eleventh spot is an endorsement for a film that came out in 2009, but deserves more praise. It was constantly confused with its (also excellent) fraternal twin, A Serious Man. It takes place in Southern California in the sixties, drenched in deep colour, and is maddeningly stylish — I would want to be in it if it weren’t a deeply sad story of lost love and friendship. In the new canon of highbrow gay cinema, it is more devastating and less obvious than Milk or (bold claim coming up) Brokeback Mountain, and more honest and far less obvious than The Kids Are All Right.
10) Four Lions: A slight work, very rough around the edges, but with bold purpose — a reversal of the fear instilled in us of terrorist masterminds lurking in tricked-out Bond villain caves near Marja, with a reminder that terror can be perpetrated by ordinary buffoons in modern metropolises. Carried out with gleeful insolence, it’s difficult to say whether Lions is actually good or just unabashedly offensive in an enjoyable way. It was reminiscent in its British political cynicism of last year’s In the Loop. I always knew jihadists were hilarious.
9) True Grit: Though far less inventive than the better half of the Coen brothers’ output, True Grit is a solid, well-told story (almost too traditional in its narrative) with another fantastic performance by Jeff Bridges. The Dude keeps knocking it out of the park, though he can also currently be seen in Tron: Legacy, which will not be making an appearance on this list.
8) Toy Story 3: This film was undeniably great; heartwarming and truly touching, even for someone who spent their childhood identifying with Woody Allen and not Woody the cowboy action figure.
7) Inception: Though Inception is emotionally cold and its puzzle problematic, the discussion it provoked rages on, and its visual dreamscape is more sophisticated and — this is the only appropriate word — awesome than anything most of us can conjure for ourselves when the lights go out.
6) I Am Love: Prepare for my description to sound like a commissioned blurb, but: this lushly filmed, unapologetic melodrama brought the word “prawnography” into my vocabulary. Every shot overflows with sensation, heightened by John Adams’ fantastic score.
5) The King’s Speech: Obvious Oscar bait? Yes. That doesn’t negate the fact that it’s tightly crafted, perfectly acted and ultimately uplifting — something that can’t be said for the shaky-cam high art aspirants about “Important Political Issues” that clutter our theaters today (though some of them are good, and on this list).
4) Black Swan: Lurid, campy and viscerally affecting: bad taste done well. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. Go see it!
3) Winter’s Bone: This incredibly bleak thriller about inbred criminals in the Ozarks had one of the best performances of the year, by Jennifer Lawrence, and presents rural American poverty in a way that has rarely been shown on screen.
2) The Social Network: Dispassionate and thrilling at once -— Aaron Sorkin may not get Facebook, but he gets ambition, power and betrayal. Guess what’s more interesting?
1) Exit Through the Gift Shop: So much more than a mockumentary (if it is one) or a grand art prank. Exit is a fascinating, as-yet-unsolved mystery about the true nature of art, imitation and reality.
I’m still waiting to watch these, and expecting them to be good: Restrepo, Sebastian Junger’s Afghanistan documentary, the depressing marriage breakdowns Blue Valentine and Rabbit Hole, Ben Affleck’s The Town, finance industry exposé Inside Job and the French prison thriller A Prophet. Sofia Coppola’s Somewhere looks good, but in my experience, all her films ever do is look good.
Overrated: The Kids Are All Right, Greenberg. Upper middle class angst, overtly referential humor and unpleasant oral sex? Over it. Some congratulated Kids for portraying a lesbian couple just like a straight one — that didn’t make their relationship any more interesting, nor did it make the social observations of the film particularly profound.
Props: Easy A — a revelation for a high school rom-com with fresh humor and a protagonist I didn’t want to punch in the face. Keep an eye out for Emma Stone in 2011.
Brad Becker-Parton
After the New Year, movies get about as quiet as a snowy winter night. The Oscar darlings all came out in December, summer blockbusters seem like centuries ago and a new crop of indie darlings are right around the corner at Sundance. For the first few weeks of January, it’s movie dry season or, The Season of the Witch. Luckily, with a plethora of great films to see over winter break and it being the time of year for lists, we can reminisce on the best films of the past year while we wait for this year’s good ones. A top 10 list, why not?
10) Tiny Furniture: The epitome of mumblecore, Lena Dunham does everything she can to make you hate her by playing a terribly grating version of herself in this post-grad dramady. However, considering she made this when she was 22, right out of Oberlin, for only 50K and with a cast and crew of her friends and family and then won SXSW, I’d say it’s an incredibly impressive feat and one that I am terribly jealous of.
9) True Grit: When armed with a good script, beautiful scenery and great actors playing quirky characters, the Coen Brothers are unstoppable. Jeff Bridges shines as Rooster Cogburn, but until the last minutes of the film I felt as if I was almost lulled into liking this movie. It took very few risks both visually and within the story but as an homage to the Western it is definitely an enjoyable movie experience albeit one that I wanted to be a bit grittier.
8) Exit Through the Gift Shop: Often referred to as “the Banksy movie,” this film was the headliner in a year where documentary and reality were constantly blurred. It is still unclear what the trick is in this movie but either way, Banksy captures an endlessly interesting character in Thierry Guetta, and Guetta captures the process of some of the most interesting street artists.
7) Inception: The highlight of the summer’s blockbusters, Inception seemed to take everyone into its dreamy labyrinth. It was one of those movies that I loved while I was in it but that broke down every time I thought about it afterwards. That said, Christopher Nolan’s almost airtight control over one of the most complicated stories ever and the endless amount of theorizing this movie allowed for makes it a perfect big-budget film experience.
6) Toy Story 3: I’ll say it: besides Black Swan this was the most affecting movie I saw this year. Decidedly not a kid’s movie, it perfectly captures the experience of growing up in a way only Pixar possibly could. The fact that I truly believed that it was possible Woody and the gang were actually going to end the movie by getting incinerated in a garbage dump is a testament to the quality and maturity of this film.
5) Animal Kingdom: The Grand Jury Prize winner for World Cinema at Sundance last year, this Australian crime drama was a pleasant end of the year surprise for me. Centered on a powerfully creepy performance as the family matriarch by Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom shows a stark difference from American crime movies in its slow pacing and long, lingering shots. It is successfully both intense and moving in its portrayal of characters in the Melbourne underworld.
4) The Town: Full disclosure: I’m a huge sucker for heist films so The Town didn’t have to do much to win me over. That said, it did do a lot, lead by its surprisingly competent director Ben Affleck. For those of you who have yet to see this or his first directing turn Gone Baby Gone, let me tell you, Ben can direct. In a complicated, multilayered action film that could have spiraled downward any second, Affleck maintained a vice-like grip on the film keeping it tight, to the point and visually pleasing. This is a movie that just works.
3) Winter’s Bone: With any name recognition whatsoever, this story of meth addiction and deep familial bonds in the Ozarks would have been the critical darling of the year and the far and away Oscar favorite. Relegated to indie darling territory, this film is receiving tons of attention (and rightfully so) for the performance of its lead, Jennifer Lawrence. Armed with one credit to her name (The Bill Engvall Show, I’m serious), Lawrence dominates the viewers attention for the entirely of the film, carrying it on her back as she does her family in the movie. Desaturated and bleak, Winter’s Bone beautifully captures a terrifying slice of Americana.
2) The Social Network: My “I told you so” movie of the year is maybe this high on the list because I expected it to be. Long before the critics took over and “the Facebook movie” was the still the butt of many jokes, fellow Reel Critic Simran Bhalla and I both were correct in predicting the success of this film. Great directing, acting and writing go along way in making a film enjoyable, obviously, but what was most impressive here was how engaging and accessible this film was without being pretentious or overly self-important (and it definitely could have been)
1) Black Swan: The year’s best movie, in my opinion, was certainly a divisive one. Some people were very put off by Aronofsky’s over-stylized and over dramatic foray into the world of ballet. Rather, this film is a nearly flawless character study into a world of incredibly flawed characters. Unlike in some of his other films, Aronofsky knows when to dial up the style to best serve an engaging plot. Working with a below average script, he and the actors were both able to turn this into a gripping, intense and heavily affecting story.
(01/13/11 5:27am)
So it’s J-term. After months of three, four or even five classes, we’ve arrived at our favorite month of the year. In order to help our readers get the most out of the next three weeks, we’ve compiled assorted activities on and off campus that we hope will get you thinking about the possibilities. Which will you choose?
Charles Giardina ’12 and friends
One Epic J-term Bucket List
1. Five Hours of Christmas Party — If you don’t know what these means just ask :D
2. Watch the Sound of Music
3. Jump around naked in the snow and then get in a hot shower with someone hotter than the water. (Part Two optional)
4. Double Snowman — You’ve heard of Double Rainbow, well we’re talking not 3 snowballs but 6!
5.Great American Challenge (requires two teams)
6. Make elaborate snow sculptures
7. 24-Hour Fast
8. Speak with a UK accent for a day — all provinces of the Empire count
9. Speak in song for a day
10.Organize a mass improv performance
11. Draw on a friend’s face and take pictures
12. Go a whole day without swearing
13. Polar Bearing
14. Pick a famous piece of a art, recreate it in photo form with friends
15. Giant Human Pyramid
16. Cross-Dressing Bonanza —cross-dressing party, with a themed playlist and drink
17. Family style home/dorm-cooked meal
18. Stairway to Heaven — line both sides of the path from the Library to Mead Chapel with snow angels.
19.Camp song-Campfire night (smores)
20. Suit up! (At least once a week)
21. Get Starbuck abs (alternatively Gerard Butler Abs — 300 Workout!)
Recipe
EGG NOG
* 4 egg yolks
* 1/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
* 1 pint whole milk
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 3 ounces bourbon
* 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
* 4 egg whites
1. Beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Slowly add the 1/3 cup sugar and dissolve it in the egg yolk mix completely.
Stir in the the milk,cream, bourbon and nutmeg.
2. Place the egg whites in a mixer and beat until the eggs don’t hold their shape when the mixer is removed (soft peaks). Gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks (they do hold their shape) form.
3. Whisk the egg whites into the mixture.
Do's and Don't's
— Power Down Challenge —
Do: Why not? We’re all about saving energy here, and sometimes it’s even more fun when we can see our results in numbers. Plus, this one doesn’t require you to leave your room.
Don't: Be the one person who forgets to turn off your lights every morning and skews the results. No one likes that.
— Ice Skating —
Do: Go ice-skating at Kenyon Arena. Remember when that used to be the winter activity of choice in elementary and middle school? Our rink’s open to everyone, although you’ll have to bring your own skates.
Don't: Go during “stick and puck” designated times (schedule available online) unless you want to practice hockey or have those who do skate circles around you. For the recreational skater, “no stick and puck” time slots are probably more relaxing.
— Playing —
Do: Play in the snow. Last year, the first big snow yielded 8-foot tall snowmen and a slew of more average ones, so let’s see if we can keep it up this year. Snowball fights are also highly encouraged.
Don't: Do so without proper gear.
— Snowshoeing —
Do: Try snowshoeing. It might not bring the thrill like tearing down Allen at the Snow Bowl, but it’s still athletic. A snowy Vermont is a beautiful Vermont, and snowshoeing through it allows you to take it in with more detail.
Don't: Expect it to be easy. Don’t wait too long to borrow snowshoes from MMC gear hours — they go quickly!
— Free Time —
Do: Take advantage of your free time. Do the things that you might never have time to do during the regular semester. Read a book or watch a movie. Go/calendar to find out about talks, panels, movies, performances and commons events going on all the time.
Don't: Fill up every minute with workshops, skiing, class, homework, and activities. It’s J-term, but it’s also time to relax if you can.
— Travel —
Do: Consider a weekend trip to Montreal or a day trip to Burlington. Getting out of the Middlebury bubble can be refreshing, and each city offers enough shopping, eating, recreation, and sights to last you a couple days at least. If you desperately need to get out and rave, the annual January Igloo-fest happens in Montreal from January 13-29.
Don't: Try to cram too many people into a Montreal hotel room and forget to see the cities during the daytime.
— Sledding —
Do: Go sledding. Don’t forget that we don’t have to go all the way to the Snow Bowl to fly down hills at high speeds; we’ve got our very own sledding hill in front of Mead Chapel, and it’s almost always open for business. Additionally, Lincoln Gap offers allows one to sled down a hill for over a mile. Check out the Local section for more information on the Mountain Club sledding trip to the Gap.
Don't: Forget that there are trees on this hill and that your sleds often lack reliable steering capabilities. Plan accordingly.
— Skiing —
Do: Shred some gnar. There’s no point bragging to your friends about the fact that Middlebury has its own ski mountain if you don’t use it, right? Shuttles leave seven times per day from Adirondack circle and student pass rates have not increased this year (although passes for others have shot up in price), so take advantage of one of the coolest aspects of our school.
Don't: Forget about options outside of the Snow Bowl, because we’re not just talking about downhill. Middlebury has a beautiful Rikert Ski Touring Center at Breadloaf, and there’s no reason not to explore that as well. In order to get cheaper rentals, join the SKIGA Nordic Ski Club. Registration ends on Jan 15.
Additionally, Stowe, Sugarbush and Mad River Glen (sorry boarders) are within easy driving distance. The Snow Bowl is convenient, but it’s also fun to try something new.
— Fashion —
Do: Make sure you’ve invested in good winter shoes. Good traction trumps all in Vermont. Wipeouts aren’t fun, and good boots will make everyone’s J-term better.
Don't: Choose fashion over function. You’ll end up disliking the snow more if you’ve unintentionally fallen into it.
from the
calendar
MOUNTAIN
CLUB FUN
1. Monday 17th
Capture the Flag (8PM)
2. Tuesday 18th
Fortress Building/Snowball War (war commences at 4:30PM)
3. Wednesday 19th
Iron Chef (5PM)
4. Thursday 20th
Fireside @ Brooker (7PM)
(01/13/11 5:07am)
As the new year rolls on, the Middlebury College men’s basketball team continues to rack up victories, setting a school record with an 11-0 start to the season after crushing Lyndon State 87-50 on Sunday.
“We are excited about the record start to the season,” said head coach Jeff Brown. “We have competed extremely well on defense and offensively we are a very balanced team.”
The Panthers got off to a 6-0 start to the season before the end of the semester put their success on pause. Picking up 2011 right where they left off, the Panthers beat Rensselaer 77-60 in their first game back on Jan. 2 to improve to 7-0. Middlebury, ranked fifth at the time, secured the victory with stingy defense that saw Rennsselaer shoot less than 30 percent from the field. On offense, the Panthers had great ball movement and racked up 22 assists on the night, 12 of which came from standout sophomore guard Jake Wolfin ’13. Ryan Sharry ’12 continued his team-leading performances with a game-high 18 points and 13 rebounds, while Nolan Thompson ’13 nailed three of his six three-point attempts.
Following that strong showing, the Panthers went undefeated on a two-game road stint. First, Middlebury defeated 22nd-ranked Plattsburgh in a close 88-82 contest. Heavily aided by a 12-1 run in the middle of the third quarter, the Panthers were able to hold on in the second half to push their record to 8-0. Tri-captain Ryan Wholey ’11 scored a career-high 24 points to lead his team to the win, while Wolfin added 12 points and 10 assists. The Panthers were able to hold off a terrific effort from Plattsburgh’s Josh Bruno, who scored 24 points while going six for six from behind the arc.
Middlebury’s next victim was Colby-Sawyer, defeating the Chargers in an 80-54 contest that saw the Panthers get their tenacious defense back on track. Tri-captain and center Andrew Locke ’11 dominated on both sides of the floor, leading all scorers with 15 points while adding 10 rebounds and 10 blocks for a triple double. Sharry added 14 points and eight rebounds for the 9-0 Panthers.
Returning to Pepin to face Skidmore last Saturday, the sixth-ranked Panthers continued their hot shooting, making 46 percent of their field goal attempts while going on to win 85-72 to improve their record to 10-0 on the season. Middlebury never gave up the lead after gaining it five minutes into the first half, using a 10-0 run led by Sharry to take control soon after. Sharry and Thompson both scored 17 for the Panthers in a game where four Panthers scored in double figures.
The team’s latest victory, a historic one, came on Sunday against Lyndon State, with an easy 87-50 victory that saw the Panthers open the season 11-0 for the first time in school history. The Panthers used two big scoring streaks to gain a 31-10 lead that they would never relinquish.
Middlebury held Lyndon State to a meager 27 percent shooting from the floor, while Nolan Thompson used his 23 minutes on the floor incredibly efficiently to rack up 22 points, including five three-point field goals. Additionally, Sharry’s second-half slam dunk punctuated the win in convincing fashion, giving fans something to cheer about in an otherwise uninteresting period that saw Middlebury double the Lyndon State score on several occasions. Many Panthers contributed points and saw court time in the game, which showcased the great depth of coach Brown’s stellar team.
With NESCAC playing beginning next week, Middlebury will look to continue their historic winning streak at Tufts on Friday.
(01/13/11 5:02am)
In their opening match of the season on Dec. 5, Middlebury men’s squash played the formidable Princeton team, ranked third in the nation and boasting a roster that includes the country’s top college squash player. The Panther men put up a hard fight, but were defeated 9-0. Coming off of the tough defeat by the Tigers, the 18th-ranked Panthers took on a double challenge this past Saturday, when they faced off against Bowdoin, ranked 17th, and Colby, ranked 24th, at the Williams Tournament.
The Panthers, refueled by a long break and a rigorous practice schedule to start the year, came away victorious in both matches, taking Bowdoin 7-2 and defeating Colby 8-1. The Middlebury victory was well deserved and can be attributed to the depth of their men’s team. The Panther first-years turned in an excellent showing, with all of them winning their matches against Bowdoin and Colby this weekend. The Hurst brother duo also stood out on the weekend and delivered two hard-fought matches to contribute to the win over the Polar Bears, with first-year Parker Hurst ’14 following in the footsteps of success paved by his older brother Spencer Hurst ’13.
Beating the Polar Bears was a particularly triumphant moment for the Panthers, as they lost twice to Bowdoin during last year’s season. On Saturday, the men avenged those losses in a big way. Jay Dolan ’13 led the team’s winning ways with a gutsy victory in five games from the number one spot. The top of the ladder, rounded out by Valentin Quan ’12, Parker Hurst ’14 and Brian Cady ’11, struggled more against their opponents than the bottom five, attesting to the superior depth of the Panther team.
The 8-1 victory against Colby was the cherry on top of the Panthers’successful weekend. Players from all years contributed in the victory, as the team made up for a loss in the contest between number one Dolan and Colby’s Harry Smith and swept the rest of the Mules.
The Panther squash team is beginning just its fourth season as a varsity sport at Middlebury with coach John Illig at the helm, but the team has enjoyed tremendous success so far. Illig has been coaching squash for 18 years at Colby, Bates and now Middlebury.
In their first varsity season, ’07-’08, the Panthers won a NESCAC tournament match and had the opportunity to compete at Nationals. Since then, they have won the national Team Sportsmanship Award in the ’08-’09 season, and finished fifth at NESCACs in their ’09-’10 season. They were ranked 17th nationally last year, and they just defeated the 17th-ranked team this year. They also set a school record of 20 wins last season, with only seven losses, and they are on their way to having yet another record-breaking season this year.
(01/13/11 5:00am)
Musical broadcast
Jan. 13, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
The Town Hall Theater is bringing a big show to the small town of Middlebury, as it shows the Broadway musical “Fela!” tonight. The musical, a story about a Nigerian activist and musician, will be broadcast from the National Theater of Great Britain. The show also features dances choreographed by Bill T. Jones. Buy your tickets ($17) today at the THT box office, or visit the theater’s website at http://townhalltheater.org.
Winter farmer’s market
Jan 15, 9:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Middlebury’s famous farmer’s market will be held at American Flatbread in MarbleWorks, just a short move inside from its outdoor summer location. As always, you can find fresh produce from local farmers and buy baked goods, meats and even crafts. Stop by on Saturday morning to stock up with great food for the week, or just to sample what the vendors have to offer!
Classical piano concert
Jan. 15, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Give your ears a treat and your body a rest this Saturday night at Brandon Music, located on 62 Country Club Rd. in Brandon, Vt. Peter Seivewright, a talented concert pianist and a music professor at the University of Trinidad and Tobago, will be performing. Seating is limited, so call (802) 465-4071 or email clare@brandon-music.net to purchase a $15 ticket. Don’t miss out on what is sure to be a delightful concert!
Community theater social
Jan. 15, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Join the Little City Players for an evening of theatrical fun! The group calls for all those with any interest in acting, producing or managing to gather at the Vergennes Opera House. There will be a cash bar and a silent auction as well. Test out your acting skills and have a great time. Admission is free.
Pancake breakfast
Jan. 16, 7 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Start your Sunday off right and head to the Addison Fire Station to enjoy an all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast. The event is sure to be a great community get-together, as all funds raised will go to purchase new equipment for the fire department. Who wouldn’t want to eat some blueberry pancakes for a good cause? Tickets are just $6 for adults and $4 for children under 12. For more information, call (802) 759-2237.
Fiddlers club meeting
Jan 16, 12 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Add a little groove to your Sunday! Head down to the Middlebury VFW, located at 530 Exchange St., for the Champlain Valley Fiddler’s Club Meeting. You don’t have to be an expert fiddler to enjoy the music and dancing. Free refreshments are available. A donation of $1 is encouraged, though students can get in for free. Support a local group and have a great time! For more information call
(802) 771-7122.
(01/13/11 4:55am)
In their first meeting of Winter Term, on Jan. 9, the Student Government Association (SGA) sought to address complaints about the lack of available newspapers in the dining hall and continued discussing old business, such as Pass/Fail and Midnight Breakfast.
Currently, the SGA funds The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and USA Today — the three papers currently delivered on campus. They plan to address the newspaper shortage by ordering 30 extra New York Times papers on Monday through Friday. Doing so from now until the end of spring semester will cost approximately $1125.
The option of decreasing the number of USA Todays was also suggested. However, because the specific number of delivered papers are part of a contract with the Collegiate Readership Program, this is currently impossible.
In addition to increasing the paper subscription, other proposed possibilities to increase the availability of papers in the dining hall include signs encouraging students to return newspapers after they have finished reading them, instead of throwing them away, leaving them on tables or carrying them from the dining hall.
Discussion about old business carried over from the 2010 fall semester also resumed in the new year. Cook Commons Senator Michael Polebaum ’12 has continued working with the Old Stone Mill in an attempt to gauge and increase faculty support for a Pass/Fail option for classes taken at the College. To be implemented, Pass/Fail would have to be supported by a majority in a full faculty vote.
However, the existence of a majority in favor of Pass/Fail remains uncertain. Until a majority is believed to exist, the SGA is unlikely to push for an immediate vote because a failing vote on the Pass/Fail issue could seriously hinder progress and undo much of the previously accomplished work.
Further discussion of old business included the issue of institutionalizing Midnight Breakfast, instead of annually introducing a resolution to fund the program. While some senators questioned the wisdom of this decision, others proposed that doing so would allow the SGA to more efficiently use its time.
Sophomore Senator Charles Arnowitz ’13 also spoke briefly about two future resolutions to be introduced at the next meeting. The first resolution will support the reinstatement of the R.O.T.C. program on the College campus. The program was ended in the 2001-2002 school year, primarily because of the military’s perceived discriminatory policy against gays and lesbians through the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell legislation.
Because Middlebury lacks its own R.O.T.C. program, participating students must travel to the University of Vermont in Burlington.
The second resolution would focus on raising the SGA’s profile at the College, both by encouraging more voter participation in elections and by raising awareness for SGA issues. A possible component of this resolution could be an amendment to bylaws to streamline how elections are run.
Further information on both of these new resolutions will become available at the next meeting, on Jan 16 at 7 p.m. in the Crest Room.
(12/02/10 5:06am)
While most of us were enjoying turkey and catching up on sleep, the Middlebury men’s basketball team got off to an undefeated start over the break thanks to incredible shooting and tenacious defense.
The four-game win streak that the Panthers are riding began during the UMass-Dartmouth tournament that took place the first weekend of the season in which the Panthers, led by tournament MVP Ryan Sharry ’12, were victorious. Middlebury, ranked ninth nationally before the tournament opener, came away with a 63-60 victory against Baruch. The Panthers’ swarming defense played a key role in the victory, as the Bearcats were held to just 30 percent field goal shooting, counteracting Middlebury’s 1-13 shooting from behind the arc and ten missed free throws.
The game was a battle throughout all four quarters, as the score was tied on 15 different occasions. A fourth-quarter jump shot with only six seconds left by sophomore guard Jake Wolfin ’13 broke the final tie, giving the Panthers a 62-60 lead. The Bearcats had one last opportunity to tie the game with seconds left, but could not capitalize on either of two free throw attempts as Middlebury secured the victory.
Just a day later, the Panthers won the tournament and got off to a 2-0 start, beating host school UMass-Dartmouth 86-62 in the finals. The Panthers controlled the game throughout both periods, shooting 52 percent from the floor while connecting on 7 of 11 three-point attempts. Middlebury also dominated defensively, holding a 41-27 advantage in rebounds. Senior forward Ryan Wholey ’11 led the team with 21 points while Sharry added 15 points and 11 rebounds.
The following Tuesday, the Panthers took the momentum of the tournament victory into their first non-tournament game, earning a road victory over St. Joseph’s College with a score of 83-69. The team had big plays on defense, with 15 blocked shots –– including six from captain Andrew Locke ’11 –– while continuing to shoot well from the field, hitting over 50 percent of their attempts.
St Joseph’s kept it close throughout the first half, only trailing by five points going into the break. However, the Panthers were able to pull away in the second period due in large part to a 14-2 run in the middle of the fourth quarter. Locke led all scorers with 15 points.
Middlebury continued their lights out shooting and constricting defense in their home opener at Pepin, getting off to a 4-0 start with an easy 86-31 victory over Johnson State. The Panthers shot an incredible 64 percent from the floor, hitting 50 percent of their three point attempts while holding the Badgers to less than 25 percent shooting. The Panthers were able to overcome an early deficit thanks in large part to a 21-6 run in the middle of the first quarter. Led by Sharry’s 13 points, the team also benefitted from its depth of talent –– 14 different Panthers scored during the game, as the bench continues to be a strong point for the team.
“After a 5-0 start, we’re looking to finish strong with a win at Union before heading into the break,” said guard Winslow Hicks ’12. “Not only do we have a solid team this year, but we are by far the best-dressed team in the NESCAC.”
The Panthers wrap up the 2010 portion of the season with a road game at Union this Saturday, where they will strive to build on this undefeated streak, undoubtedly gunning to surpass men’s soccer’s impressive 7-0 start to the season.
