29 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(02/27/20 11:51am)
Women’s squash made the trek down to Yale this weekend to battle it out in the College Squash Association National Championships. Middlebury went 1–2 for the weekend, facing some of the top ranked teams in the nation.
First up on Friday, Feb. 21, the Panthers were tested by #10 University of Virginia (UVA) for the second time this season. While the match didn’t go their way, Virginia Schaus ’22, Natasha Lowitt ’20, and Caroline Arena ’23 were each able to snag a game from their second-seeded opponents.
The following day, Middlebury geared up to face #14 George Washington University (GW) in the semifinals. Having been edged out by the Colonials 6–3 in January, the Panthers tried to close the gaps that GW had capitalized on to nab the win. It was a nail-biting fight that came down to the very last match at the sixth spot after the Panthers knotted the match at 4–4. However, the Panthers run would be stopped as a Colonial came from behind to steal the win.
“We fought well against UVA,” Lowitt said. “It really set us up well to take on George Washington. The match against GW was 4–4 and unfortunately, we lost the last match, but we were really proud of how everyone played. It was really exciting that we almost beat GW since we lost 6-3 earlier in the season.”
Sunday, Feb. 22, was a NESCAC showdown, with the winnter grabbing the No. 15 final national ranking. The Panthers had some trouble with Bates during the regular season when they ultimately fell 6–3. But after a weekend of tough competition, Middlebury was up for the task. The women quickly picked up the first four matches as the Bobcats remained silent. The Bobcats narrowed the gap by two before the Panthers responded once more with back-to-back-to-back wins in the first and seventh slots. Annie Glassie ’20 showed her experience as a veteran when she closed out the contest in her position without dropping a game.
“Beating Bates to end the season was really special because they have been such a rival all of my four years,” Lowitt said. “Our team’s love of the game and love for each other really showed this weekend.”
(02/20/20 11:45am)
Flair: a term that when spoken aloud to some means a rustic pair of good ol’ “bell bottoms.” But that would be “flare,” spelled differently. No, this “flair” is something completely different – not a ’70s fad poking its head in and out of the fashion world as it pleases. To one specific group on campus, this word defines its culture like no other expression can. That group is the Ultimate Frisbee Team, the Middlebury Pranksters.
“Flair” is widely known in the ultimate frisbee world. But how teams choose to incorporate it into their culture varies. Pranksters — both the men and women’s teams — define flair as a word for “atypical” clothing. Whether it is a sparkly tutu or leggings ordained with the anatomy of a leg, anything goes with flair. Flair is anything you want to wear that brings you joy. Grace Kellogg ’22 describes wearing flair as “owning who you are and the way you want to have fun.”
It also allows the teams to bring some levity and excitement to their practices, speaking to the cornerstone of their culture. Have you ever tried to sprint 50 yards in a sparkly tutu? By no means is flair always comfortable to play in. But this tradition goes way beyond the chafing between one’s legs. It provides a sense of community, bringing a laugh or two before that 50-yard sprint.
“It’s a way to not take ourselves too seriously, but at the same time we take what we do very seriously,” said Adrienne Goldstein ’20, one of the team’s captains.
Each year, the Pranksters have a bi-annual “flair pass down” — one at the end of J-Term and one at the end of the spring semester. During this teary-eyed event, graduating seniors give away what they believe to be meaningful pieces of “flair” — items either passed down to them by former Pranksters or ones obtained in a quick run to the nearby thrift store for a last-minute gold mining opportunity. Upon appointing another team member as the bearer of the aforementioned sparkly tutu, the senior recounts tales of the items’ origins.
Articles can include practically anything, whether they are connected to an individual or the team as a whole. Kellogg recalled a senior who found medical scrubs after raiding a thrift store and gifted them to a pre-med student. “You do things that help them feel connected to a community that is a lot bigger than them,” Kellogg said.
To understand the Pranksters and the culture of the team today, it is important to revisit the roots of ultimate. Unlike many other club and varsity sports, frisbee is a relatively new sport, rising to fame in the tumultuous ’60s as a form of counterculture that tried to alter a specific lifestyle. Ultimate was a form of revolt against the uniformity of competitive sports. Rutgers and Princeton battled in the first official collegiate contest in 1972. From the very first moment it was created, the founders were laser-focused on fostering a unique set of values that would set it apart. These virtues of a “letting loose” lifestyle are pronounced in the Pranksters we know today.
The Pranksters are agile both on and off the field. They pride themselves on being dynamic and able to adjust to the needs of each new class it brings in. The central mantra tends to be the idea of inclusivity. An example of this is the way in which the teams constantly reevaluate their culture through their community standards workshop. Previously, the official name of the women’s team was the Middlebury Lady Pranksters. Last year, Goldstein picked up on some tension with regards to the gendered team name, and quickly assembled a poll that she sent out to her team. There was a unanimous vote to change the official name, despite years of its acceptance.
“This team is for the people who are on it now,” Goldstein said. “We obviously love our alumni and value our traditions, but we don’t want to keep traditions just for the sake of it — we had had so much success with that name, but the people that were on the team didn’t like it. Our traditions aren’t static. We never want to put anyone in a vulnerable or uncomfortable position, and that is across the board and the final word.”
The inclusivity continues through the winter. Each J-Term, the Pranksters put on J-Term workshops and create different traditions to combat the cold and darkness that can eclipse January in Vermont. The group does its best to ensure that teammates forget the icy wind chill for just a few short hours each week. The workshops can range from anything like “How to Twerk’’ to a more lowkey “Spa Night.” These are not mandatory, but they provide a more accessible social option. The culture is simple: You are never alone.
However, not all team members experience this attention to inclusivity equally. Last year, an article by Sidra Pierson ’21, written for a J-Term sports journalism course and published in The Campus, highlighted some questions about the team’s emphasis on inclusivity. For some people of color on the team, this focus was not ringing true.
“POC communities have different cultural norms than majority white communities do,” said Divya Gudur ’21, a student quoted in Pierson’s article. “I think the quirkiness sometimes doesn’t fit into POC culture.” If we already stand out, she says, why would we want to draw more attention to ourselves?
“I thought the team was really receptive to Pierson’s article,” said Goldstein. “We shared it in our GroupMe and discussed it (along with other topics) at a community workshop. I think for a lot of white members of the team it forced us to confront the fact that being inclusive of POCs takes more than just being really friendly in interpersonal interactions.”
Goldstein added that she has tried to bear the article in mind as she’s made leadership decisions this year. “In general, we have tried to change the way we discuss and valorize weirdness,” she said. “With wearing flair for example, we are trying to shift away from an attitude of, ‘This is something we all do’ to, ‘This is something you can do if you want.’ However, I think that there is still a lot of work to be done.”
[pullquote speaker="Pranksters captain Adrienne Goldstein '20" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]This team is for the people who are on it now. We obviously love our alumni and value our traditions, but we don’t want to keep traditions just for the sake of it.[/pullquote]
Due to this year’s overwhelming interest in ultimate, the captains resurrected the women’s B team for the first time in four years. This program addition allows more students to be active, competitive and social. This change also helps accommodate the varying levels of the athletes. For instance, being from Seattle, one of the nation’s ultimate hubs, it is only natural that Kellogg is a longtime veteran of the game. She competed on her varsity high school team. This is in stark contrast to those who have never once thrown the disc.
This being said, the program’s decision to expand also had a developmental component. There is the hope that with increased training and instruction, some of these B team members will improve and contribute to the success of the A team. Biology Professor Erin Eggleston is currently coaching the B team.
Goldstein wears a few hats, considering that the A team is coached by students. “Being a captain and a coach at the same time, having to play and also think about the big picture is really really tough,” said Goldstein. “We were the ones that created the A and B teams and have to also act as the emotional support. There is a large amount of emotional pressure put on us ... but it is really rewarding. It is great that it’s student driven in a lot of ways.”
The teams face a multitude of challenges, including insufficient coaches, trainers and funds. The captains have close-to-last dibs on reserving time slots in the fieldhouse, and players are unable to check off a P.E. requirement from participating, regardless of their dedication.
In spite of these hurdles, Pranksters have managed to pull off impressive results. The women went from being unranked two years ago to rounding out the season at nationals in fifth place. The men are coming off a national championship run, and looking to pick up another title at the end of this spring.
“It’s fun to be this team that’s out there, and actually delivering,” Kellogg said.
Even in the unassuming sparkly tutu, they work hard. Really hard. The captains schedule around two A team practices a week on the turf, if they are able to secure the times, and two lifts a week.
Both teams have come a long way. For the women, the goal had traditionally been to get to nationals. Coming off last year’s season and securing fourth in preseason rankings, the goal is now to win nationals. However, they are trying to stay humble and not get too far ahead of themselves.
“We are trying to be more process oriented, than results oriented,” Goldstein said. “We are trying to go into every game confident, but not cocky.”
Hopefully, the Pranksters will be able to show what they are capable of in the upcoming months, whether they are leaping up to the disc in medical scrubs or neon capes. The constant commitment to developing their unique culture will only increase their chances of succeeding.
“[We] are one of the only D3 teams that can be both competitive and goofy,” Kellog said. “You put on your flair and you’re ready to run.”
A link to their fundraiser: http://sites.middlebury.edu/ultimate/leadership/
(02/13/20 9:07pm)
Women’s Squash took anything but a vacation during Feb break. The team got back on the road to face a loaded schedule, competing against top-ranked teams. The northeast tour began with a tough matchup against both Virginia and Harvard, followed by Tufts and was rounded out with strong NESCAC tournament play. Overall, Middlebury came out of the week with an even 3–3.
The Panthers fell short in Cambridge, succumbing to #10 Virginia on Saturday, Feb. 1 and #1 Harvard. Despite a promising run from Virginia Schaus ’21 in her first match, Middlebury was shut out in both contests. But they quickly dusted themselves off and headed up to Medford.
On Sunday, Feb. 2, Middlebury came out firing against #20 Tufts and kept their momentum. The Panthers only dropped two matches and were able to pick up four shutouts in the fourth, sixth, seventh, and eighth slots.
The Panthers headed into the NESCAC tournament confident as they came off such a decisive win, and they made sure to deliver. The women overcame Bates with a score of 7–2 to lift them into the semifinals on Friday, Feb. 8. Annie Glassie ’20 made the most of her final NESCAC tournament, fighting to the very end in the eighth position. After the first game slipped through her fingers 11–9, Glassie found her way past her opponent in the fifth game to clinch the match.
A few hours later, Trinity proved its worth as the number one seed of the tournament, refusing to allow Middlebury a single match in the semifinals. The Bantams went on to ease past Williams with an 8–1 triumph in the finals. Middlebury then battled for third place against Amherst. The women were able to steal third place from the Mammoths in a tight 6–3 tussle on Sunday, Feb. 9. Amherst threw the first jab and took the first slot in five games. The Panthers quickly punched back with wins from all three seniors including Glassie, Natasha Lowitt ’20, and Mira Chugh ’20 in the seventh, fifth, and eighth positions respectively. Caroline Arena ’23 and Gwen Davis ’22 finished off their opponents to give Middlebury the victory.
Lowitt commented on the work behind her team’s successful weekend.
“We have been spending more time at practice doing drills and playing games that mimic the pressure we feel in real matches,” said Lowitt. “I think this intentional exercise of feeling stressed and uncomfortable at practice has really helped us stay calm and feel prepared in tough matches.
The Panthers are now at the tail end of their season. On Friday, Feb. 21, the women will journey to Yale for the CSA Team Championship to spar against some of the best teams in the nation. On Friday, March 6, a handful of the squad will head down to Pennsylvania for the CSA Individual Championship.
“Our last weekend of the season is nationals and we are really hoping to move up a spot in the rankings,” said Lowitt. “We have been playing really well against strong teams and want to continue this momentum at nationals.”
(01/23/20 11:09am)
Women’s squash has had its ups and downs this season, but the team was able to bounce back over the holiday weekend, going 2–1 on its home courts.
The strong performance began on Thursday, Jan. 16 when the Panthers fed off of the energetic crowds that filed in behind them to sweep #16 Amherst. Confident after such a decisive win, the women eased past #18 Franklin and Marshall on Saturday, Jan. 18 with a 9–0 finish, giving the Diplomats only a single game throughout the entire contest. Unfortunately, Middlebury was unable to extend its winning streak as it could not find a way past #12 Brown on Sunday, Jan. 19. Strong play from three Panthers helped decrease the margin to 6–3. Holding the second spot in the lineup, Virginia Schaus ’21 stole a match from the Bears without dropping a game. Her win was followed by teammate Annie Glassie ’20 who snatched the win in a nail-biting five game match in the eighth slot. The third victory came from fellow senior Mira Chugh ’20 who closed out her contest in four games in the ninth position.
Glassie commented on the strong weekend. “We definitely felt good about our performance this weekend, beating Amherst and F&M 9–0 showed everyone’s focus and commitment,” said Glassie. “Our match with Brown was closer this time than it has been in the past, and I think everyone fought really hard and we never gave up. I think for this upcoming weekend we want to build on the momentum from brown and continue to bring the same level of energy and focus to Bates. Bates is a good team and one that we have always had tight matches with so it’s good that we are coming out of a successful weekend and everyone is fired up!”
The Panthers, now with a 3–4 record, will use this week to prepare for their triple header that kicks off on Thursday, Jan. 23 on the road against Bates. The women will move on to face Bowdoin and Colby on Friday, Jan. 24 and Saturday, Jan. 25 respectively.
(09/19/19 10:03am)
Cross country
By JORDAN HOWELL
The Middlebury cross country team competed in the Bates Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 14. The women finished in third place, while the men captured fourth place.
“The men's and women's cross country teams are excited now that the season is underway!” Talia Ruxin ’20 said. “It was awesome to lace up with the first-years this weekend, and we are feeling lots of positive energy.”
On the women’s side, Ruxin was able to capture seventh place with a time of 18:44.5, while Cassie Kearney ’22 came in 10th place with a time of 19:07.8. For the men, Quinlan McGaugh ’22 came in 10th place with a time of 26:34.4, while a time of 26:44.0 propelled Jack Litowitz ’20 to a 13th place finish.
“The Bates Invitational was a fun race and a great opportunity to run against some strong NESCAC competition early in the season,” McCaugh said.
Regarding the upcoming Aldrich Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 21, Litowitz was optimistic.
“A combination of the experience fresh off of a meet this past weekend, spiking up and running on our home course should allow the team to improve this week over last, and carry the positive momentum forward onto the bigger meets where it counts," he said.
Football
By LAUREN BOYD
The Panther football team kicked off their season with a 17–13 win against the Williams Ephs on Saturday, Sept. 14, scoring the game-winning touchdown with less than a minute on the clock.
The start of the second quarter opened up the scoring game. Carter Massengill ’20 put the first points of the game on the board, scoring a field goal from 25 yards out.
Later in the second quarter, the Panthers scored an 18–yard touchdown, gaining a 10–0 lead. The rest of the second quarter, however, was commanded by the Williams offense. Between the second and third quarters, the Ephs scored 13 unanswered points.
With just one minute and 30 seconds left in the game, the Panthers marched down the field behind Jernigan. A series of short passes and 10-yard gains led the Panthers to the 2-yard line, where Jernigan punched in the game-winning touchdown. Massengill tapped in the extra point, making the final score 17–13.
Men’s golf
By JACK KAGAN
The men’s golf team finished at the podium for this past weekend’s Duke Nelson Invitational. The Invitational took place at Middlebury’s Ralph Myhre Golf Course and featured 23 teams from around the region. After a strong start atop the standings at the end of day one, the Panthers finished the tournament in third place, just one stroke behind Williams.
Jordan Bessalel ’21 and co-captain Jeffrey Giguere ’20 shined on day one, coming in at sixth and third place respectively. Giguere finished out day two in first place by one stroke ahead of Williams’ Will Kannegieser. Giguere earned a combined score of 142. Neither Bessalel nor Giguere’s heroics were quite enough to lift the Panthers into second place as a team. New York University finished first.
After a strong showing, the Panthers will have little time to rest before heading down to their rivals’ turf in Williamstown for the Williams Fall Invitational.
Women’s golf
By MICHAEL SEGEL
The Panthers outdid last year’s performance at the St. Lawrence Invitational, this year coming in second place out of nine teams. On Sept. 7–8, five players from the women’s golf team came together to accomplish this feat. Their impressive performance can largely be attributed to the work of Blake Yaccino ’20, who finished third overall out of 47 participants. Classmate Chloe Levins ’20 wasn’t far behind, finishing in a tie for seventh overall.
Coming off the strong showing at the St. Lawrence Invitational, the women then competed in the Ann S. Batchelder Invitational on Sept. 14–15. They came in third overall behind Williams College and Wellesley College. Katie Murphy ’23 finished tied for second overall out of 42 golfers, shooting a two-over par 146 (74–72). Yaccino finished tied for fifth at 154 (76–78), while Levins finished tied for 18th with a 164 (84–80). Elizabeth Kenter ’23 finished tied for 27th, shooting a 169 (85–84), and Kayla Li ’23 finished in 29th with a 170 (85–85). The Panthers will be swinging back in action next week at the Mount Holyoke Invitational.
Men’s tennis
By JACK KAGAN
The men’s tennis team fell just short of divisional titles in four of four singles brackets this past weekend at the Middlebury Invitational on the Proctor Tennis Courts.
Though the squad is currently beginning a rebuilding process after losing its top two players to graduation, a bright future might not be so far away. The top singles flight saw unseeded Stan Morris ’22 blaze through to the finals, taking out the No. 3 and No. 2 seeds in the process.
Robby Ward ’23 also made a run to the finals in the B singles draw, knocking off No. 1 seed Brandeis sophomore Jeff Chen. David Vilys ’22 and Zach Hilty ’22 also made it to the finals in their respective C and D singles draws, and will look to use the momentum to propel themselves into a consistent starting role come spring time.
Surprisingly, the two doubles draws were devoid of Middlebury teams past the quarterfinals, likely owing to sets of entirely new doubles pairings.
The tournament featured teams such as Tufts University and Brandeis College, with whom the Panthers will have to contend if they want to stay at the top of DIII tennis.
Men’s soccer
By ERIK ARVIDSSON
After starting the NESCAC season with a scoreless double overtime tie, the Panthers traveled last weekend to Brunswick, Maine to take on the Bowdoin Polar Bears. For the second week in a row, the Panthers struggled connecting with the back of the net. The team finished with six shots on goal compared to Bowdoin’s 15 and neither were able to score. The game ended at 0–0.
The man of the match was goalkeeper Ryan Grady ’23. Grady made six saves to complete his second shutout of the year. The Panthers remain positive despite not scoring in two consecutive games.
“We have been doing all the right things,” Jack Spiridellis ’21 said. “We just need to put the ball into the back of the net, then we will win games.”
Up next, the Panthers played their home opener against Mt. St. Mary of New York on Sept. 17 (which occured after this issue was sent to print). The Panthers will round out the week with a home double-header this weekend against Hamilton on Saturday and Castleton on Sunday, Sept. 22.
Women’s tennis
By DAN MIGUEL ESPINOSA
The Middlebury women’s tennis team journeyed down Route 7 this past weekend for the Lindsay Morehouse Invitational at Williams College. The invitational followed a round-robin format in which the Panthers competed against three other teams in a full weekend of doubles and singles. No individual team was awarded champion.
On Friday, Sept. 13, three of four doubles pairs picked up victories against Skidmore. The following day, Middlebury swept RPI in three doubles matches, but only took two of three doubles matches against Williams. For singles, Middlebury swept RPI in all five contests.
Middlebury faced Skidmore again on Sunday for singles and won four of six matches. Against Williams, the Panthers won all three singles matches and won their only doubles contest.
The women will use this weekend to prepare for the ITA Regional Championships that kick off at home on Sept. 27.
Women’s soccer
By JENNY LANGERMAN
Women’s soccer had another successful week, winning both of this week’s games to put them at five total wins and zero losses.
The Panthers first faced SUNY Plattsburgh on the road. Despite solid play from their opponents, Middlebury was ultimately able to shut them out two-zip with goals from captain Jinx Charman ’20 and Leah Salzman ’21, and the help of strong defensive play.
Middlebury then hit the road once again to play the Bowdoin Polar Bears, having to put up a tougher fight in their second game of the week. The Bears got an early lead, scoring within the first eight minutes of play. The Panthers matched them with a goal from Salzman, but were unable to pull ahead until the very end. With just a minute and a half of game time left, captain Ellie Greenberg ’20 was able to hook one into the side of the net, securing the win.
The Panthers now have a week to regroup and prepare before their next match against conference-opponent, Hamilton College, on their home turf this Saturday, Sept. 21.
Volleyball
By HEATHER BOEHM
Middlebury Women’s Volleyball fell to an undefeated Clarkson on an unlucky Friday, Sept. 13, and split their weekend contests with a win over Potsdam and a loss to St. Lawrence on Saturday, Sept. 14.
In their first battle of the weekend against Clarkson, the Panthers came out expecting a war. Although they put some numbers on the board, they ultimately fell in straight sets to the 23rd-ranked team in the country. Gigi Alper ’20 led the Panther defense, picking up 13 digs for the night. Jane Nelson ’22 built on her teammates’ efforts and led the offense with six kills.
After a hard loss, Middlebury got back to work. The women triumphed over Potsdam with a decisive 3–0 victory. This time around it was Maggie Wise ’22, who took control of the Panther offense tallying 11 kills.
Although the Panthers were hungry for more, the women fell just short of a victory over St. Lawrence. Middlebury rolled through the first two sets before St. Lawrence stole the next two right back. Middlebury was then defeated by the Saints in the fifth set 15–12.
The Panthers will journey to Maine over the weekend, where they will compete against Colby on Friday, Sept. 20 and Bates on Saturday, Sept. 21.
Field hockey
By DAN MIGUEL ESPINOSA
Field hockey fared successfully on their Sept. 14–15 road trip, defeating ninth-ranked Bowdoin College and 18th-ranked Babson College, 1–0 and 2–0, respectively. The Panthers had difficulty stirring up scoring opportunities during the first half against the Bowdoin Polar Bears. But they gained momentum in the third quarter, outshooting the Polar Bears 3–0. Finally, the Panthers scored 30 seconds into the fourth quarter. The 1–0 score remained until the end of the game.
Against Babson, Middlebury struck early twice in the first quarter. The Panthers struggled scoring for the remainder of the game, but still made some spectacular stops.
Correction: A previous version of the cross country recap included outdated information and dates.
(05/09/19 9:57am)
Tireless. This is just one word that describes Rachel Eldredge, the Assistant Director of Sports Medicine. She is an athletic trainer, a therapist and practically a mother to many athletes at Middlebury (the last two were conveniently left out of the job description).
Rachel, or “Trachel” for “trainer Rachel” to differentiate her from the Women’s Tennis Head Coach Rachel Kahan, is one of the main reasons that the field hockey, women’s ice hockey, and both tennis teams have achieved so much success both on and off the field, ice, or court. Eldredge has been a trainer at Middlebury since 2003, and just last year was promoted to her most recent role of Assistant Director. She was an athlete herself, swimming for the University of La Verne in California. Due to her modest nature, she would never tell you unless you asked.
Her job is made difficult when most of her athletes are unable to describe the physical problem. Sometimes her athletes come in knowing they are in pain, but not being able to describe where it is coming from exactly. With a few prods and pokes here and there, Eldredge is able to find the root of the problem. And, if on the rare chance that problem solving takes her more than five minutes, she transforms into a dedicated researcher. If she can’t locate the problem, she will find someone who can deliver her the answers. She will write a plan, construct a strict schedule and check up on her athletes every day to evaluate their progress. Everyone needs a “Trachel”; even her athletes have told her that she needs a “Trachel,” given how much she works with her body to heal others.
Maddi Stow ’20, a member of the women’s tennis team, has spent a large portion of her career recovering from injuries — meaning she has spent a lot of one-on-one time with Eldredge. Stow, coincidentally the Director of the SGA Health and Wellness committee, commented on the help Eldredge provides her off the court, “Rachel challenges us to make time for our self-care even when we are extremely busy. She is always there to pick up the slack (and pick up a snack) when our bodies start to give out on us. When I fractured my elbow freshman year, she would even put my hair in a ponytail when I couldn’t. Even while I was studying abroad, we were in constant communication with her giving me exercises and advice in order to make sure I was healthy when I came back.”
Eldredge’s dedication to the three female (and one male) sports teams she treats is unparalleled. Grace Jennings ’19, captain of the field hockey team, also spoke about her team’s tight-knit relationship with Eldredge. She reminisced about her junior year season and Rachel’s help along the ride. “My junior year I suffered an ankle injury after someone jumped on it off of the field,” said Jennings. “It was right after we had won NESCACs and we were heading into NCAAs. I couldn’t play in practice at all and was on crutches during the week. In order to play in games, we put probably two-to-three inches worth of tape on my ankle to keep it stiff. Especially in the semi-final game of NCAAs, my ankle was in a lot of pain and I was becoming more and more frustrated. But Rachel was there for it all. She worked with me to come up with ideas for how to keep the ankle stiff while not hindering my speed. Mentally, it was very challenging, but she calmed me down and made me focus on the game instead not the injury itself. And that’s what she always does. She takes care of our physical and mental wellness so that we can focus on our performance on the field.”
Athletes all know that in the training room, we have a friend and trainer in Rachel. And that relationship cannot be replicated easily. Junior Sidney Portner spoke of Eldredge’s help with the women’s hockey team over her past three seasons. “I think over my three years the thing that I have noticed and always gives me a good laugh is that she knows each of our very different personalities and she manages them so well,” explained Portner. “She loves that we all come in and heat or ice, and she always mentions how “we are so self-sufficient,” claiming that we make her job easy. This is pretty funny considering it in no way can be ‘easy’ to manage 25 different women, yet she does it every day for five months, excited every time we walk in that training room even if we don’t need her.”
What is most special about Eldredge is her ability to form personal relationships with almost every athlete she works with. You can see how much she values these relationships by her comments about the hardest part of the job. “The hardest part about my job is telling an athlete their season is over because of an injury,” said Eldredge. “No matter how hard I try to fix my athletes, there are certain situations where time or surgery are the only way to fix the injury. Whether they are a first year or senior there is nothing I can say to make it all better. The only thing I can do is to be there for them every step of the way and be as supportive as possible.”
We are lucky to have someone so dedicated to not only her job, but also the athletes themselves, helping them succeed wherever they go. Her love for her role and athletics is simply unmatched. “Being an athletic trainer at Middlebury and working with such talented teams has given me the ability to be a part of something great, pushed me to be better every day and given me such great purpose in my life,” said Eldredge. Eldredge is even willing to travel across the world for her teams. In just a few short weeks, she will accompany the field hockey team on a trip to Dublin, Ireland and Belfast, Northern Ireland.
(04/18/19 10:00am)
Picture this: It’s Sunday morning. You snooze your alarm three times at 11:00 before you get the courage to brave the -2-degree winds and make the journey through the snow to find the nearest open dining hall. You take your time, kicking your legs up and preparing for some “Sunday Scaries.” This may be the life of an average Middkid. But for a volunteer ski patroller? Quite the opposite.
Ski patrol: the heroes that we didn’t know we needed until we had them. They are not only students, but also masters of the mountain. Not simply athletes, but qualified medics. Not just “sendy” (as senior President Kaitlyn Francis coins them), but professional.
The day on the job for a patroller starts with a harsh 7 a.m. breakfast. In the spirit of camaraderie, the goal is to get there as timely as possible in order to make sure that no last-minute stragglers slept through their alarms. The squad then makes their way to the Middlebury Snow Bowl with a prompt 8 a.m. arrival. After slapping on some boots and other gear to protect them from the freezing temperatures, they find out their two to three responsibilities for the next eight hours in the office. Some of these include the coveted top hut duty (sitting pretty at the top of the mountain waiting to jump on any type of accident) and Sheehan duty (skiing to the left side of the mountain by Sheehan lift). Emily Kohutnicki ’20 claims that her duty of choice is the “top hut duty” (hot tub top hut). She loves this role because it’s where she can “really spend some time with fellow patrollers and get to know both new and old friends.”
The process of joining the squad is no easy task; it requires strong mental and physical capabilities. A prospective patroller has to be both a skilled and experienced skier, as well as pass written and oral exams that earn you a role just below that of an EMT, a certification known as Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC). Current members of patrol teach the class every Sunday for three hours during the fall semester, so if you’re not 100% committed, your spot on the Bowl looks pretty bleak. It is as if you are taking a fifth class, which is a huge sacrifice for a goal that is by no means promised, even if you pass the challenging standardized tests. The course even entails a midterm involving practicals, which are scenarios of injuries that are set up by the patrollers which students then must respond to flawlessly. If you thought a midterm was a lot for an extracurricular, then you will be shocked to hear that they even have a final exam given by the National Ski Patrol (NSP), where they must earn at least an 80%.
The journey does not stop here. Next, your ski abilities are put to the test, and the Vermont conditions are anything but a walk in the park. Only students with the highest scores are admitted to the mountain, and from here on physical aptitude is carefully examined — may the best skier win. With the patrollers only having a few slots open, there is no margin for error and your skills must be executed without any blemishes.
So, after reading about the arduous process, why join patrol? Veteran skier Kohutnicki commented that she joined because of the social aspect and the people she found. “Being an intimidated freshman living in Coffrin with only a handful of others, I wanted to find a way to meet new people and find friends with a common interest – skiing, duh,” said Kohutnicki. “Some people are pre-med students who ski [who] wanted to combine academics with pleasure, but I just thought the idea of responding to injured skiers on the mountain could be fun and fulfilling.”
Although this process seems as if it would produce a cutthroat and hypercompetitive atmosphere, most who experienced this overwhelming process emerged with a different perspective. Kohutnicki commented that she did not find the environment to be too competitive. Even though they were competing against each other for six or seven spots, students would study with one another and veteran patrollers jumped at the chance to help with lingering questions. One would think that the ski test would be even more intimidating, being a more athletic contest, but it was more of the same positive and encouraging energy.
Old-timer Francis said that her favorite aspects of ski patrol are the people and the culture. “We all love spending time together on and off the hill, and there is a strong culture of “sendiness” and a “love of skiing,” Francis said. “Ski patrollers have become some of my best friends at Middlebury which makes volunteering as a ski patroller not feel like a job but rather just a blocked-out time chunk to spend with people I love being around.”
But it is definitely not all fun and games and the squad knows how to balance fun and professionalism. Francis commented on one of the more dangerous aspects of the job where quick action is key. “It’s definitely intense when we get a call about anything head or C-spin related where we would need to backboard, since these types of injuries can be really serious and especially with spinal injuries there isn’t room for error on our end,” Francis said. “But we do so much training throughout the fall when we teach or take the OEC class and on-hill in the winter that responding becomes almost automated. Having drilled in practice, responding to accidents doesn’t feel scary since I definitely have always felt super prepared by all the training we do.”
One of the most exciting days for patrollers is their claim to fame on Winter Carnival, when Middlebury hosts multiple schools to race down the Bowl. For some, this is a weekend in which many students use to enjoy the finer things at Midd, but this is the day in which patrollers must be most active. With rowdy students crawling their way to the top of the Bowl in Converse, the patrollers are only drunk with excitement. Despite being on duty, Francis claims that Winter Carnival is one of her favorite days of the year. “It is so much fun to be on skis and feel part of the skier hype as well as the energy that the silly people bring up from campus,” she said. “I really love getting to see everyone who comes up to the Bowl and being able to get right into the roost mosh pit, but then ski down and watch my friends racing from the bottom. It’s actually a pretty great day to be in the office, bopping around on skis.”
Graduating this spring, Francis has been able to develop her leadership and organization skills while in charge of the ski patrol squad, since all of the group’s educational, fundraising, scheduling and social operations are run by the students. “I really appreciated the opportunity to take charge of these different elements and am so grateful to the group for being so willing to volunteer for various jobs,” she said. “We were a small group this year which means that the class and fundraising efforts needed all hands on deck, which was stressful at times but in the end I think improved all of our leadership and communication skills.”
Community building has been at the heart of Francis’ time on ski patrol and one of the highlights of her Middlebury career. “It is pretty rare to be able to post in a GroupMe about a sunrise skin and have more than a dozen people immediately be up for the challenge and early morning,” she said.
We saw winter come and go. New waves of fresh-faced patrollers entered the scene as “washed up” seniors take their last runs down the mountain, dressed to the nines in their unmistakable bright blue jackets with their radios weighing them down. These are truly the unsung heroes of the Bowl, protecting the community one run at a time. Now, all we can do is wait for another Vermont winter of “sendiness.”
(03/07/19 10:57am)
The Middlebury women’s lacrosse team took to Kohn Field with a loud home crowd behind them for the first time since last May. Ranked the second squad in the country after an exhilarating NCAA run, the Panthers walked out on the turf hungry for another almost flawless season. But, on Saturday, March 2, the women fell short, trailing Bates 11-10 by just one goal in overtime.
The Panthers got to work early on, throwing up the first two goals on the scoreboard. Emily Barnard ’20 and Kirsten Murphy ’21 snuck two shots past the Bobcat goalie before the third minute ticked by. The field was quiet for another 20 minutes, as both teams failed to find an open net. The silence was broken by Barnard once again, when she cradled the ball to the crease, giving the Panthers a three-goal advantage.
Barnard came out looking faster and stronger than ever, picking up a career-best of five goals during the contest. Despite a relaxing semester abroad in Madrid, Spain, she showed no signs of any respite and posed a huge offensive threat to the Bobcat defense. If this matchup says anything about her, Barnard will continue to be a leading scorer throughout the 2019 season.
But Bates answered the deficit. They snapped the host lead, adding two goals to their name before Kate Zecca ’20 tallied another for the Panthers. At the end of the half the Middlebury offense held their ownclosing out the period still having a narrow margin of 6-5 over their NESCAC foes.
As the second half whistle blew, the women hit the ground running. The Bobcat defense was helpless against an unrelenting Middlebury offense. Erin Nicholas ’21, who was a big part of Middlebury’s success last year, started off the scoring followed by Barnard and Casey O’Neill ’19. But a four goal lead was simply not enough. In the final 15 minutes of the half, Bates knocked back five more goals to Middlebury’s one, tying the game and leaving Middlebury parents at the edge of their seats.
Captain Susanna Baker ’19 spoke about the team’s play on Saturday. “Our play in the midfield was awesome on the draw and in transitions. However, we struggled to finish on offense, which gave Bates more possessions that they capitalized on. This week we are really focusing on taking only high percentage shots and communicating well on defense,” Baker said.
The underdogs were in for an overtime fight and they got the upset that they came for. In the final moments of play, Bates sophomore Summer Dias propelled her team to victory with an unassisted goal, closing out the match with a score of 11-10.
Captain Sara DiCenso ’19 commented on the team’s unexpected loss this past weekend. “We were definitely upset at the outcome of the game. We are not going to dwell on the loss and our mistakes, but rather hope to learn from them. I think this will be a good learning experience for our team and can be a positive turning point in our season,” said DiCenso.
The women will look to find revenge in their two matchups this coming weekend. The Panthers will face off against another NESCAC rival, Connecticut College, on home turf Saturday, March 9 at 12:00 p.m. The following day, on Sunday, March 10 at 1:00 p.m., they will challenge Springfield at home.
(05/10/18 12:08am)
The women’s lacrosse team earned another piece of hardware last weekend when they became the Nescac champions for the ninth time. Despite cruising past Trinity and Bowdoin in the regular season without breaking a sweat, the two rivals came out with nothing to lose and gave the Panthers a run for their money. But the Panthers fared well under pressure and toppled their rivals. Middlebury skated past Trinity 16–13 on Saturday, May 5, in the semifinals, followed by a championship win over Bowdoin on Sunday, May 6.
Last year in the conference tournament, the Panthers did not fare as well, falling to Colby in the second round. During this year’s regular season, Middlebury fans watched as the Mules once again took the women down in a regular-season matchup, 14–12. The women were prepared to avenge that loss in a game with higher stakes, but they didn’t have to worry about the pesky Mules because they were knocked out by Amherst in the quarterfinal to end a down season for Colby.
Although the Panthers had beaten Trinity handily 14–8 in the regular season, anything can happen in a conference tournament. The heightened pressure of qualifying for NCAA’s invigorates an underdog and creates a lack of security. On top of that, they were the top seed.
“There definitely is a lot of pressure being the No. 1 seed in the tournament as well as hosting,” Zecca said. “After losing in the semis last year and watching two other teams compete for the championship on our own field, we knew there was nothing stopping us from getting there this year. No. 6 Trinity upset No. 3 Tufts in the quarterfinals, so we knew that they [were capable of pulling off an upset].”
The Panthers were reminded of this lesson this weekend when they had a tight matchup with the Bantams, once again coming from behind in the second half to win 16–13.
The Panthers had some trouble getting off to a strong start throughout the season but seemed to overcome this weakness in the conference playoffs. The hosts punched first, swatting three goals past the Bantam goalie within two minutes of play when Hollis Perticone ’18 scored her 29th goal of the season. She was quickly followed by Erin Nicholas ’21, as well as Emma McDonagh ’19, who would go on to score three more goals.
The hosts needed to be more than a second-half team because they couldn’t afford to put so much pressure on themselves in the final stanza given the high postseason stakes. The Bantams were able to sneak two more goals by Julia Keith ’20 to narrow the margin until Casey O’Neill ’19 found the back of the cage. With a score of 4–2, Trinity continued to climb back, adding one more tally to their total at the 21-minute mark.
With about 20 minutes left to go in the period, the visitors would go on to outscore the hosts 5–3, claiming the 8–7 advantage as the teams headed into halftime.
Middlebury was not concerned with this one-goal deficit, as they had dug themselves out of much deeper holes earlier in the season. They were a second-half team and would prove it today, with their home crowd behind them.
The Panthers did not win the race to the scoreboard this time. The Bantams found openings in the Middlebury defense and capitalized on their quick breaks. After the visitors continued to increase their total to a 10–7 lead, Emily Barnard ’20 found Georgia Carroll ’18 to bring it back to a two-goal game. The visitors continued to preserve their edge, climbing to 12 goals. Sara DiCenso ’19 and Jenna McNicholas ’19 hammered two shots past the Bantam goalie in between the two visitor goals.
After feeling the sting of another Bantam goal, something clicked for the Panthers. Middlebury picked up four goals within the next six minutes of play. Kate Zecca ’20 was the first of the four, exploiting a perfectly executed pass from Carroll. The Panthers were now confident at a 14–12 lead and could not let their margin be ripped from their hands. In the final 10 minutes, the hosts allowed only one Trinity ball to enter their cage, while nailing two more shots past the Trinity goalie.
Once again, Keith and Kate Furber ’19 split time between the poles, with Keith making three integral saves in the first half and Furber making one in the final stanza to bring the Panthers to victory.
It was all smiles on Kohn Field when the last whistle blew to finalize the score of 16–13. They were on to the final and were ready for a fight.
“Overall, our team felt really confident about facing Bowdoin again in the championship,” Zecca said. “Though we played them earlier in the year, it was in the very beginning of the season. We knew they had been able to develop and better their play since we last saw them, so we knew that this game couldn’t be taken lightly.”
On Sunday, the Panthers had nothing left to lose and planned on leaving everything on the field. They took the field with confidence, knowing they had defeated Bowdoin by 10 goals earlier in the season. From time to time, this confidence did waver, as the women remained neck and neck throughout the game.
The first half kept fans at the edge of their seats, as both teams had a response for each goal scored. Bowdoin tallied the first goal as Allison Williams snuck a shot in after the first five minutes. Hannah Hirchfield’s goal was then sandwiched in between two Middlebury goals, one from McDonagh and one from Grace Getman ’21. Bowdoin increased their lead by two in the next five minutes. With under ten minutes to go, Kirsten Murphy ’21 showed up once again to toss a goal in the hosts’ direction. Carroll contributed her share, following the freshman, just before the Polar Bears were able to knock one more back. Then, McDonagh knotted the score 5-5 to finish out the period.
Once again, the pressure fell on the Polar Bears with the sound of the second-half whistle. Middlebury was now infamous for its second-half runs. But the visitors were the first to earn a goal. Three minutes later, we heard from McNicholas, who kept her team in the game. This momentum was followed by Perticone and Zecca, making the score 8–5. The Polar Bears were willing to leave it all on the field as they fought back to a tie game. With a little more than five minutes to go, the Panthers found their lungs to preserve their one-goal lead. McDonagh and Carroll were able to slap back two more shots to secure the trophy for Middlebury.
The Panthers’ defense once again played a major role in their victory. The seniors led the stats, knowing this would be their final conference tournament. Evie Keating ’18 grabbed three ground balls and forced two turnovers, while Perticone helped her out with seven draw controls and another two turnovers. Susana Baker ’19 contributed her share with three turnovers and three ground balls.
Keith and Furber showed up where they needed to. In the first period, Keith prevented three balls from netting the cage. In her second-half appearance, Furber made a tremendous effort with eight stops.
The fourth-ranked Panthers will host their regional this weekend. They will play the winner of Babson and Castleton on Sunday, May 13, and are preparing by focusing on the fine points of their game, according to Zecca.
“In both the [conference] semifinal and championship, we have had to come back from three- to four-goal deficits,” said Zecca. “Although we have come out on top in those close games, it would be undoubtedly better for us to come out strong and prove that we are playing to win for a full 60 minutes.
“We are confident that we have what it takes to make it all the way to the Final Four,” Zecca added. “We just need to play the way we know we can.”
(05/03/18 11:40pm)
After having to recover from first-half deficits on consecutive weekends leading up to the Nescac playoffs, the women’s lacrosse team pledged to come out firing at the sound of the first whistle. The first-seeded Panthers did exactly that in the quarterfinals of the Nescac playoffs, jumping out to a 3–0 lead in the first 7:05 of their matchup with eighth-seeded Hamilton on Saturday, April 28, en route to a 14–5 win on Kohn Field.
Now, the Panthers will have to play a full 60 minutes against stiffer competition in their semifinal game against sixth-seeded Trinity at Kohn Field on Saturday, May 5. Trinity led Middlebury 8–4 in the team’s regular-season matchup before the Panthers stormed back with 10 unanswered goals to get a 14–8 win.
“I think that going into this Hamilton game, we knew how important it was [to] come out strong,” said Murphy. “We had some difficulty in the beginning of the last game against them, so this time we were determined to give it our all from the first whistle. We were really excited going into our first postseason game, and our energy showed on the field in our ability to get a quick start on Saturday.”
Middlebury’s three goals in the first seven minutes set the tone for the entire game on Saturday, as the Panthers outshot the Continentals 39–18 and outscored the visitors by at least four goals in each half.
Kirsten Murphy ’21 started the scoring just over two minutes into the contest. Thirteen seconds later, Hollis Perticone ’18 made the score 2–0 on a free-position shot. Then Emily Barnard ’20 scored less than five minutes later as the Panthers looked completely in control on their home field early on.
Hamilton slowed the tide momentarily with back-to-back goals, but another Murphy-fueled run put Middlebury ahead 7–2 at the halfway point. Murphy added her second and third goals of the game — her 22nd and 23rd goals of the season — and then set up Jenna McNicholas ’19, who scored Middlebury’s seventh and final goal of the first half.
Just like in the first half, the Panthers pounced on the Continentals at the beginning of the second half, scoring four straight goals to extend their run from the first half to eight straight goals, putting Middlebury ahead 11–2 and the game effectively out of Hamilton’s reach. Georgia Carroll ’18 scored three of the four goals. Hamilton came back with three goals of its own, but Middlebury closed out the game with three straight to seal a 14–5 victory, as Carroll put two more home for a game-high five goals.
Along with Carroll’s five goals, Barnard and Murphy both scored three, and Murphy assisted on four more. Murphy, in her first season at Middlebury, has scored 23 goals and assisted on a team-high 23 more. Her 23 assists place her second in the Nescac in that category, and she is second on the team in total points, behind only Emma McDonagh.
“I am so grateful for the opportunity to play on this team and the chance to go in each game,” said Murphy. “I think that my stats, along with my other teammates’, reflect the depth and versatility of our team. Any given game, there is a new leading scorer, and we often have a high number of people scoring each game. This team has been extremely welcoming, and the fact that I am a first-year does not even factor into my thoughts on the field.”
Nine Panthers have scored at least 10 goals this spring. And perhaps even more telling, no Middlebury players are in the top 10 in goals scored in conference play, even though the Panthers have scored the most goals as a team.
Middlebury’s back line turned in a solid performance that is the norm for the conference’s best-scoring defense this spring. Addy Mitchell ’21 and Evie Keating ’18 held the line on Saturday. Mitchell caused four turnovers and recovered five ground balls, while Keating forced three turnovers and picked up three ground balls. Julia Keith ’20 and Kate Furber ’19 each played a half in the cage.
This Saturday’s game promises to be more of a challenge for the Panthers. Trinity surprised third-seeded Tufts to reach the semifinals and could have beaten Middlebury in their first game.
“In preparation for this weekend’s game against Trinity, I think a big focus of ours is to go hard from the start,” said Murphy. “Some of our recent games have had a slow start where we have had to come back from behind in order to win. In practice this week we’ll work on having composure but also intensity throughout the entire game.”
Middlebury aims to win its second Nescac championship in three years after an eight-season drought. If the Panthers beat Trinity on Saturday, they will play the winner of Amherst and Bowdoin on Sunday for the Nescac championship game on Kohn Field.
(05/03/18 5:24pm)
After having to recover from first-half deficits on consecutive weekends leading up to the Nescac playoffs, the women’s lacrosse team pledged to come out firing at the sound of the first whistle. The first-seeded Panthers did exactly that in the quarterfinals of the Nescac playoffs, jumping out to a 3–0 lead in the first 7:05 of their matchup with eighth-seeded Hamilton on Saturday, April 28, en route to a 14–5 win on Kohn Field.
Now, the Panthers will have to play a full 60 minutes against stiffer competition in their semifinal game against sixth-seeded Trinity at Kohn Field on Saturday, May 5. Trinity led Middlebury 8–4 in the team’s regular-season matchup before the Panthers stormed back with 10 unanswered goals to get a 14–8 win.
“I think that going into this Hamilton game, we knew how important it was [to] come out strong,” said Murphy. “We had some difficulty in the beginning of the last game against them, so this time we were determined to give it our all from the first whistle. We were really excited going into our first postseason game, and our energy showed on the field in our ability to get a quick start on Saturday.”
Middlebury’s three goals in the first seven minutes set the tone for the entire game on Saturday, as the Panthers outshot the Continentals 39–18 and outscored the visitors by at least four goals in each half.
Kirsten Murphy ’21 started the scoring just over two minutes into the contest. Thirteen seconds later, Hollis Perticone ’18 made the score 2–0 on a free-position shot. Then Emily Barnard ’20 scored less than five minutes later as the Panthers looked completely in control on their home field early on.
Hamilton slowed the tide momentarily with back-to-back goals, but another Murphy-fueled run put Middlebury ahead 7–2 at the halfway point. Murphy added her second and third goals of the game — her 22nd and 23rd goals of the season — and then set up Jenna McNicholas ’19, who scored Middlebury’s seventh and final goal of the first half.
Just like in the first half, the Panthers pounced on the Continentals at the beginning of the second half, scoring four straight goals to extend their run from the first half to eight straight goals, putting Middlebury ahead 11–2 and the game effectively out of Hamilton’s reach. Georgia Carroll ’18 scored three of the four goals. Hamilton came back with three goals of its own, but Middlebury closed out the game with three straight to seal a 14–5 victory, as Carroll put two more home for a game-high five goals.
Along with Carroll’s five goals, Barnard and Murphy both scored three, and Murphy assisted on four more. Murphy, in her first season at Middlebury, has scored 23 goals and assisted on a team-high 23 more. Her 23 assists place her second in the Nescac in that category, and she is second on the team in total points, behind only Emma McDonagh.
“I am so grateful for the opportunity to play on this team and the chance to go in each game,” said Murphy. “I think that my stats, along with my other teammates’, reflect the depth and versatility of our team. Any given game, there is a new leading scorer, and we often have a high number of people scoring each game. This team has been extremely welcoming, and the fact that I am a first-year does not even factor into my thoughts on the field.”
Nine Panthers have scored at least 10 goals this spring. And perhaps even more telling, no Middlebury players are in the top 10 in goals scored in conference play, even though the Panthers have scored the most goals as a team.
Middlebury’s back line turned in a solid performance that is the norm for the conference’s best-scoring defense this spring. Addy Mitchell ’21 and Evie Keating ’18 held the line on Saturday. Mitchell caused four turnovers and recovered five ground balls, while Keating forced three turnovers and picked up three ground balls. Julia Keith ’20 and Kate Furber ’19 each played a half in the cage.
This Saturday’s game promises to be more of a challenge for the Panthers. Trinity surprised third-seeded Tufts to reach the semifinals and could have beaten Middlebury in their first game.
“In preparation for this weekend's game against Trinity, I think a big focus of ours is to go hard from the start,” said Murphy. “Some of our recent games have had a slow start where we have had to come back from behind in order to win. In practice this week we'll work on having composure but also intensity throughout the entire game.”
Middlebury aims to win its second Nescac championship in three years after an eight-season drought. If the Panthers beat Trinity on Saturday, they will play the winner of Amherst and Bowdoin on Sunday for the Nescac championship game on Kohn Field.
(04/25/18 9:10pm)
The women’s lacrosse team loves to grind out wins in the second half, almost as much as they love keeping their fans on the edge of their seats. And, this weekend, they definitely gave their fans an emotion-filled 60 minutes of play, when they fought past Tufts and Hamilton to secure two crucial Nescac victories.
The Panthers opened the weekend by coming from behind to defeat No. 8 Tufts 15–10 on Saturday, April 21, the second game in a row in which they came back against a top-10 opponent. They closed out the weekend by charging past Hamilton 20–11 at Kohn Field on Sunday, April 22.
With the two wins, Middlebury vaulted past Tufts in the conference standings into a tie with Amherst for first place. If the Panthers won at Williams on Wednesday, April 25, after the newspaper went to print, they won the Nescac regular-season championship and earned the top seed in the conference playoffs.
The Panthers were in high spirits as Vermont hinted at its first signs of spring this Saturday, with sunny 50-degree temperatures. This energy translated onto the field, but it was only after a slow start that the Panthers truly dominated.
Tufts came out firing, scoring five of the first six goals of the competition to take a 5–1 lead 15 minutes into Saturday’s game. The scoring started almost five minutes into the game, when Dakota Adamec stole the first goal off a free-position shot. After Tufts doubled their score, Emma McDonagh ’19 netted her first of five goals, narrowing her team’s deficit by one.
But Tufts came right back, driving home three goals in just over six minutes to take that large early lead. On their home field, where they had not lost all season, and with a four-goal lead, the Jumbos had the Panthers on the ropes early on.
Middlebury countered two straight goals, but Tufts quickly discounted those goals and then some by tallying four of the next five goals to build what would their largest lead of the contest, 9–4.
McDonagh gave Middlebury some momentum going into the halftime locker room by scoring her second goal with 3:34 left in the half, and Tufts led 9–5 at halftime.
For the third game in a row, Middlebury trailed at halftime, and the four-goal deficit was the largest of the three.
“KP (Coach Kate Livesay) always calls us the second-half team,” said Hayden Garrett ’20. “We’ve really embraced it, because we know we can make a comeback or increase our lead going into the next 30 minutes of play. But our goal for this week, going into Nescacs, is to transform [ourselves] into a two-half team. We know we are capable of this because being a second-half team also tells us that we can outlast anyone — we are confident and fitter than our competition. But this also tells us that we should be able to do this right from the first whistle.”
Coach Livesay was absolutely correct about Saturday afternoon.
The Panthers quickly penetrated the Jumbo defense, scoring the first six goals of the period. In a matter of 15:33, Middlebury went from behind by four to up by two goals on the back of McDonagh, who notched her third, fourth and fifth goals in that span.
After McDonagh’s fifth and final goal, Tufts got one back to cut Middlebury’s lead by one, but that was as close as the Jumbos would get. Georgia Carroll ’18, Kate Zecca ’20, Jenna McNicholas ’19 and Hollis Perticone ’18 each scored to close out an emphatic 15–10 Middlebury victory, giving Tufts its second loss in the Nescac and eliminating the Jumbos from contention for the top seed in the conference.
The next day, the Panthers brought in a win on their senior day on Sunday, April 22 at Kohn Field.
The women excitedly celebrated all five of their strong graduating class: Evie Keating ’18, Claire Russell ’18, Alex Freedman ’18, Carroll, and Perticone.
Once again, the Panthers only got rolling well into the second half on Kohn Field. In a high-scoring first half, Middlebury took an 11–9 lead over Hamilton (3–7 in the Nescac), led by Carroll’s three goals.
Livesay must have given a strong halftime speech, based on Middlebury’s performance coming out of the break. They scored nine of the 11 goals in the second stanza to put away the visiting Continentals.
A rotation of three goalies protected the cage well enough to lift Middlebury to victory. In the first half, Julia Keith ’20 prevented two key balls from getting past her, while in the second half Kate Furber ’19 made another appearance in goal, rejecting three shots. Alex Freedman ’18 won some playing time after Furber.
Carroll, McDonagh, and Perticone scored hat tricks during the matchup. Susana Baker ’19 was the defensive heroine, forcing three turnovers and picking up five ground balls.
“It was great to celebrate our seniors this weekend,” said Winslow Ferris ’20 afterwards. “It was fun to see some seniors get playing time that normally don’t start. Claire Russell had her first goal of the season, and Alex Freedman made an incredible save in goal. We know that this year we were lucky to be playing under such great senior leadership, on and off the field, and will miss them a lot next year.”
After yesterday’s game at Williams, Middlebury sets its eyes on Nescacs, which begin on Saturday, April 28. If the Panthers won yesterday, they will be the one seed in the playoffs. If they lost and Amherst lost to Trinity, Middlebury will be the one seed. Otherwise, Amherst will be, and Middlebury will be the second seed.
“We are confident going into our game on Wednesday,” Garrett said. “Looking ahead, we are also really excited and grateful to prolong our season past Wednesday’s game. Playing alongside these girls this season has been incredible. It truly is the first team I have ever been on where I feel like our entire unit is a family.”
Regardless of Wednesday’s result, Middlebury will have a home game in the quarterfinals on Saturday, April 28.
(04/18/18 9:00am)
The women’s lacrosse team learned a valuable word this past weekend: grit. No. 8 Middlebury clawed its way back to a victory after being down by four goals to Nescac rival No. 11 Trinity twice on Saturday, April 14. The Panthers kept their home crowd on their toes in what made for an exciting, and at times too exciting, game ending with a 14–8 score in the host’s favor. And they bounced back from their first Nescac loss to Colby last weekend, when the Mules dominated the Panthers in at the beginning of both halves on their way to a 14–12 upset.
The back-and-forth affair was another storied matchup between two of the Nescac’s perennial powerhouses in women’s lacrosse, since the two programs have combined to win 13 of the 17 Nescac championships in conference history. Not coincidentally, Kate Livesay ’03 played on three of Middlebury’s eight championship teams, from 2001 to 2003, then coached Trinity to four of its five championship teams, before returning to Vermont to capture one at her alma mater in 2016 in her second year as the Panthers’ head coach.
“Trinity has been one of our rivals over the years, so this game has a special place in our hearts,” said Hayden Garrett ’20. “Kate Livesay came back to Middlebury after coaching at Trinity for a number of years, so there’s yet another thing fueling us to beat Trinity. This year’s sideline was the most enthusiastic sideline I have ever been a part of, and I know that being loud helps fuel everyone on the field. The momentum of goal after goal in the second half allowed us to keep pushing until we left the field with 10 unanswered goals.”
Trinity has had the slight edge in the previous five seasons of this matchup, taking five out of the eight games during that time, but Middlebury won the only matchup last season 10–9 in double overtime and avenged a regular season loss two years ago with wins in the Nescac and NCAA championship games.
The Panthers got off to a rocky start when the visitors quickly seized on the gaps in the Middlebury defense and put up four tallies in the first 10:01 of Saturday’s contest, claiming the foreign field as their own territory.
But there is a reason they play 60 minutes, not 10. Hollis Perticone ’18 fired up her teammates when she put her team on the board and got them back in the game mentally. Perticone had been out for three days of practice due to a virus, but a lack of stamina was nowhere to be seen on the field as she sparked the momentum shift for her teammates. Knowing that her games were numbered as a senior captain preparing to enter her final postseason, she would not let her sickness be an excuse for another Nescac defeat.
Kirsten Murphy ’21 continued her outstanding debut in the blue-and-white with her 15th goal of the season, and Trinity matched her goal to keep Middlebury at an arm’s length. Emily Barnard ’20 and Murphy ignored any obstacles Trinity placed in their way to bring Middlebury within one, which was as close as Middlebury got in the first half. Trinity scored once more in the first 30 minutes and led 6–4 at halftime. Before the game, Livesay certainly would not have been happy to trail by two at that point, but in that moment, she must have been thrilled after her team’s disastrous start.
The beginning of the second half reminded everyone at Kohn Field of the game’s first 10 minutes. Trinity scored the first two goals within the first nine minutes of action. But they began to relax too soon — far too soon.
Something switched in Middlebury’s mindset. It all started with Erin Nicholas ’21 scoring on a free-position shot almost midway through the second half. Murphy followed two minutes later to complete her hat trick, creating her own opportunity by breezing past multiple Trinity defenders. Perticone and Georgia Carroll ’18 then tied the score.
Less than four minutes earlier, Trinity led by four, but they would never lead again. Murphy notched her fourth goal of the game to take the lead three minutes later.
Then Perticone, looking more than healthy, assisted Casey O’Neill ’19 on her first goal of the game. Nicholas put home her ninth goal of the season to bring Middlebury ahead 11–8.
After a little more than six minutes without scoring, which seemed like an eternity after the Panthers’ scoring spree to take the lead, Middlebury’s second-leading scorer, Emma McDonagh ’19, scored her first of the game to extend the lead to four goals. Then Jenna McNicholas ’19 added insult to injury by scoring back-to-back goals in the last three minutes to cap off Middlebury’s remarkable turnaround. At the end of 60 minutes, the scoreboard read Middlebury 14, Trinity eight. And the Panthers’ comeback against their conference rivals was complete.
Middlebury’s win came without defender and two-time All-Nescac performer Evie Keating ’18, who sat out the game because of an injury. Emma Johns ’20 got some of the playing time in Keating’s absence and helped the Panthers clamp down on the Bantams in the second half.
“Evie is currently working through an SI joint injury that she sustained over spring break,” said Garrett. “Not having her on the field has been difficult, as we have had to readjust how we play our defense, but even though she is not presently on the field, her leadership is still so impactful on our team, and I know that she will be back on the field soon and it will be as if she were never injured.”
Julia Keith ’20 posted another strong start in the cage, making nine saves compared to Trinity’s four.
Not only did the win give Livesay and her team bragging rights over her former team, it also kept Middlebury ahead of Trinity in the Nescac standings. The Bantams fell to 5–3 and a fourth-place tie with Bowdoin in the conference, and Middlebury moved to 6–1, half a game behind Tufts and a game behind Amherst in the standings.
Middlebury will square off with No. 6 Tufts on their turf in Medford, Massachusetts, on Saturday, April 21, with an opportunity to leap the Jumbos and move into second place in the Nescac. In fact, the Panthers control their own destiny. If they win their last three games, they will win the Nescac regular-season championship because they beat first-place Amherst earlier this season. After their matchup against Tufts, Middlebury will host Hamilton on Sunday, April 22, in a rescheduled game from earlier this season, and then will travel to Williams on Wednesday, April 25 for the last game of the regular season.
(04/11/18 9:03pm)
[gallery ids="38544,38543,38546,38545"]
The women’s lacrosse team squared off with Nescac rival Colby on Saturday, April 7, on its home turf at Kohn Field. In a hard-fought battle, No. 15 Colby thwarted two Middlebury comeback attempts to defeat the No. 9 Panthers 14–12, handing them their first conference loss and knocking them out of first place in the standings.
Going into the contest on Saturday, the Panthers knew they were in for a battle, even though the Mules entered with a 1–4 Nescac mark. All four of Colby’s losses came by two goals or fewer.
The Panthers also knew Colby like the back of their hands after playing them three times last season. In 2017, they fell to the Mules in the regular season 9–6. Then, during the Nescac semifinals, they got another opportunity to topple the Mules. But they were unable to finish off any of their fast breaks past the Colby defense in a 10–9 loss.
These hard losses taught the Panthers some valuable lessons, and in the second round of the NCAA tournament, they sought revenge and ended the Mules’ season when Jenna McNicholas ’19 knocked in the game-winning goal in the final seconds to seal a 10–9 victory for the Panthers.
With these fresh memories in their minds, the Panthers and the Mules took the field on Saturday. And in the first 15 minutes of action, Colby proved they were much better than their record indicated, jumping out to a 4–0 lead before Middlebury even had a chance to blink.
Erin Nicholas ’21 got Middlebury on the scoreboard by hammering in a pass from MG Gately ’20. Her goal marked a momentum shift for the Panthers, as teammates Henley Hall ’19 and Kate Zecca ’20 followed her lead, slapping two more shots home.
With Middlebury inching its way back to a tie score, Colby increased its advantage to two when Kendall Smith scored on a free-position shot. Emily Barnard ’20 took the two-goal lead away when she found an opening and narrowed the score to 5–4. Both teams added an additional goal to their totals in the last two minutes of the first half, and Colby led 6–5 at the halfway point.
The hosts started the second period of play in a promising way. Barnard recorded her second goal of the day within seconds of the first whistle to knot the score. Despite mounting pressure in a tied conference game, the Mules passed through the usually impermeable Middlebury defense and knocked a shot past the Panther goalie a few minutes later. They continued to score four more unanswered goals to build the largest lead of Saturday’s game. Behind by five, Middlebury took a timeout.
“We knew that we were much better than the way that we were playing so we took a few timeouts to collect ourselves,” said Erin Nicholas ’21 afterwards. “We knew the deficit should not have been what it was.
The Panthers put their heads down and got to work, scoring six of the next seven goals. Kirsten Murphy ’21’s goal with 3:44 remaining tied the game at 12.
“We picked up our energy and our level of play, and built off each other’s momentum,” added Nicholas. “Once we got one goal, the others came a lot easier. It got more and more exciting with each goal. The home field advantage helped a lot with fans and family and playing on our home turf was definitely more comfortable.”
The crowd at Kohn Field came alive as the Panthers fought back into the game. Both teams had multiple opportunities, but it was Colby who capitalized on two of their quick breaks and found the back of the Middlebury net twice to earn a 14–12 victory.
The loss dropped Middlebury to 5–1 in the Nescac and 9–2 overall. Barring results from last night’s late games, the Panthers are in fourth place in the conference standings, behind No. 6 Tufts and No. 4 Amherst with Tufts standing alone at the top. Colby moved into a tie with Hamilton for seventh place in the standings, as both teams sit at 2–4.
Saturday’s game demonstrated just how much parity and competition there is in the Nescac this season.
“The conference is so competitive in the way that any team could win on any given day,” said Zecca. “Unfortunately, Saturday was not our day.”
Saturday’s game is just that, though — one game — and the Panthers know there is still a lot of season left.
“We know that we are the better team,” added Zecca. “It just comes down to putting our beliefs into action. We hope to see Colby again in the postseason so that we get another chance to prove our talent, drive, and desire to win. We don’t need to change our play to beat Colby. We just need to come out strong and play our game.”
One positive from Saturday’s game was the return of goalie Kate Furber ’19 from an injury that sidelined her for the first 10 games of the season. Furber started 24 games in her first two seasons in the blue-and-white and returned on Saturday to relieve Julia Keith ’20. Keith has started all 11 games this season and played admirably in Furber’s absence, with 65 saves for the Nescac’s top defense.
Middlebury’s situation at goalie is not unlike anywhere else on the field — full of depth and ready to withstand any injury that may occur.
“Losing any member of our team, whether they start or not, is always going to have a large impact on our team,” said Zecca. “Furber has worked tirelessly to recover as quickly as possible, but her support and encouragement this past season [have] impacted our game just as much as if she were healthy and playing. One of the most powerful things about our team this year is our depth. Any member of the team can step up and perform when needed, just as Keith, and many other players, have demonstrated so far.”
Despite the hard loss, the team hold their heads up high as they remember what happened the previous year after a harsh reminder of their vulnerability. The team is excited to hopefully face the Mules again in the Nescac tournament. Next up, the Panthers take on No. 8 Trinity on Kohn Field this Saturday, April 14, at 2 p.m., in another important conference matchup against head coach Kate Livesay ’03’s former team with the opportunity to leapfrog the Bantams in the standings.
More importantly, the game will provide another tough test for Middlebury, who needs to continue to improve after having some vulnerabilities exposed last Saturday.
(03/21/18 10:24pm)
Despite the Vermont cold front, with temperatures hovering in the teens all weekend, the women’s lacrosse team extended its winning streak to five games. The Panthers easily toppled Wesleyan with a dominant 13–1 win on Saturday, March 17, to move to 5–0 on the season and 3–0 in the Nescac.
To completely annihilate No. 12 Wesleyan — who entered Saturday’s matchup looking like a top Nescac competitor after defeating previously-ranked No. 2 TCNJ on Wednesday, March 14 — like Middlebury did took a complete team effort.
Seven Panthers scored on Saturday, as Middlebury outshot Wesleyan 27–5, with the defense doing their job in limiting Cardinal shot attempts. Evie Keating led the defense on her way to Nescac Player of the Week, which she garnered for forcing six turnovers and collecting four ground balls on Saturday.
You could tell the Panthers felt comfortable on their home turf, as they earned a spot on the scoreboard just moments after the first whistle and never lost their lead after that point. Emma McDonagh ’19 proved her position as a leading scorer when she slapped back the first of her four goals of the contest in the first 18 seconds of play. McDonagh doubled the score when she fired another one past the Wesleyan goalie on a free-position shot just minutes later.
Then it was Casey O’Neill ’19 who gave the Panthers a comfortable lead over the Cardinals after capitalizing on another free-position shot. With Middlebury up 3-0 after less than eight minutes of play, the women were not done yet.
Although the returning players were notching point after point on the board, it was Kirsten Murphy ’21 who made the next three goals happen. First, the first-year glided past the Cardinal defense on her own and hammered the ball past Allegra Grant, the visitors’ goalie. She then assumed a playmaking role, assisting both Georgia Carroll ’18 and Emily Barnard ’20.
Less than 17 minutes into the first half, Middlebury led 7–0.
“We talk a lot about playing as a team — our saying for this year is ‘the pack survives’ — and I think that has translated into our playing style on every part of the field,” said Henley Hall ’19. “While lacrosse is often seen as working on individual skills, a lot of it is team cohesion and reflective glory, or feeling like a teammate’s accomplishments are your own. I think we have also been doing a good job of approaching every game with the same mentality and confidence.”
McDonagh kept the Panthers’ first half momentum going on a free position shot to give herself a hat trick and to increase the Middlebury advantage to seven goals.
The Panthers closed out the half with three more goals, silencing the Cardinals’ hopes until the final 30 minutes of play. Carroll found her second goal of the contest, followed by Jenna McNicholas ’19, who took advantage of a strong assist from Murphy. With under three minutes to go, Barnard successfully breezed past the visitors and knocked in the final goal of the half.
Even though the freezing winds persisted, Middlebury did not let the icy air interfere with their second half of play. McDonagh once again led off the scoring, tallying her 10th goal of the season. After about 40 minutes of unsuccessful Wesleyan attempts to seep past the Panther defense, the Cardinals finally broke through. Abby Manning found the back of the net, despite an impressive attempt at a save by Middlebury goalie Julia Keith ‘20. About three minutes later, Middlebury had a response when O’Neill raced by the Cardinals to extend Middlebury’s double-digit lead. Kate Zecca ’20 completed the competition when she clubbed a shot back in, giving the Panthers a 13–1 victory.
Keith once again protected the net with skill, rejecting four Cardinal balls from her cage.
Middlebury will open its spring break with a matchup against Bowdoin at home on Saturday, March 24, at 12 p.m. The Panthers are seeking revenge after falling by one goal in overtime to their conference rivals around this time last year.
“While we have executed well against all the teams we have played so far, playing Wesleyan this past Saturday was an opportunity for us to take our game to the next level, and I think fortunately we were really able to do that and show ourselves how much potential we have,” said Hall. “We’re going into this week of practice with a lot to be proud of and a lot to work on, and we’re going to prepare for the Bowdoin game just as we do every other game. We’re excited to kick off our spring break trip with a competitive Nescac game.”
(03/14/18 5:46pm)
Coming off of a successful opening weekend, the fourth-ranked women’s lacrosse team showed no signs of slowing down as they extended their win streak last Saturday, March 10. They came out firing on all cylinders in New London, Connecticut, en route to toppling Nescac rival Connecticut College by a 10-goal margin, 12–2. Then in their home opener on Monday, March 12, the Panthers dismantled St. Lawrence 15–3 on Kohn Field to move to 4–0.
The Panthers made themselves comfortable right away on Saturday, as Emma McDonagh ’19 scored her first two goals of the match within the first six minutes of play to give the Panthers a 2–0 lead over the Camels.
Middlebury, hungry to capitalize on its advantage, showed no signs of fading, as McDonagh then assisted Georgia Carroll ’18 and Emily Barnard ’20 on the next two goals. Just before the 10-minute mark, Barnard tallied a second goal, assisted by Kate Zecca ’20, to put the Panthers up 5–0.
After missing much of last season with a foot injury, Barnard has already scored more goals in her sophomore year than in her first year, six to five, and is happy to be back on the field again.
“I fractured my fibula and now have a plate and six screws in my ankle,” Barnard detailed. “It definitely took a while to get back into shape, and I was definitely disappointed to miss out on playing field hockey.”
Although the sophomore’s surgery meant that she had to miss the entire field hockey season last fall and, therefore, their run to a national title, she knows that the time has allowed her to get back on track and ready to contribute to both the lacrosse and field hockey teams going forward.
“That time really allowed me to focus on rehabbing my foot and improving my skills,” Barnard said. “It definitely took longer than expected, but I’m so ecstatic to be healthy and back out on the field with all of my teammates.”
With just under ten minutes left in the half, Conn. College showed some resilience, when Clara Bisson slid a shot past Julia Keith ’20. In the last breaths of the half, Middlebury snuck two more balls in. Carroll notched her second goal of the day, which McDonagh followed moments later with her third goal of the day to secure her first hat trick of the season.
In the second half, the Panthers continued their domination. Kirsten Murphy ’21 kept the momentum going with a strong finish off a good look from Sara DiCenso ’19. Barnard then joined McDonagh in the hat-trick club when she hammered a shot in just seconds after her teammate. Henley Hall ’19 increased the lead to ten when she made a remarkable unassisted effort past the fading Camel defense.
The Panthers closed out the contest with two more goals in the remaining 10 minutes, courtesy of Erin Nicholas ’21 — which marked the first goal of her collegiate career — and Murphy. The Camels were able to get one more shot by Keith before the last whistle sounded, which brought the competition to the final score of 12–2.
A running theme for the Panthers so far this season has been their solid defense. Barnard and her teammates noted that trend continued last weekend.
“Our defense was really solid, especially our goalie [Keith], who saved nine of 11 shots,” said Barnard.
Evie Keating ’18 and Alex White ’19 held a strong defensive line that was headlined by Keating’s four forced turnovers and four ground balls and White’s five forced turnovers and six ground balls. “Conn. College could barely hold on to the ball,” added Barnard.
The chemistry that was notable in the season opening weekend two weeks ago was on display again last weekend.
“Ten of our goals on Saturday were off assists,” Barnard reiterated. “I think that speaks to how well we work together as a team and want to see our teammates succeed.”
Middlebury fell behind Springfield 1–0 on Monday but scored the next eight goals on the way to a 15–3 victory. Carroll scored three more goals to bring her team-leading total to 10, and McDonagh added two goals and three assists.
The No. 4 Panthers will be back in conference action on Saturday, March 17, when they take on Wesleyan at noon in what will be their first bout this season against a ranked opponent.
And their schedule does not get any easier after that, since three of the Panthers’ four opponents after Wesleyan are ranked as well, including No. 2 TCNJ. Middlebury will aim to revenge last year’s 8–4 NCAA regional final loss to TCNJ
Middlebury and Wesleyan are two of the five remaining undefeated teams in the Nescac, along with Amherst, Trinity and Tufts.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
(NEXT 5)
Three of the Panthers’ next five come against ranked conference opponents, with one of those games (March 31) on the road at Amherst. The No. 4 Panthers will be tested before the calendar turns to April.
Sat. 17 No. 18 Wesleyan, 12 p.m.
Sat. 24 No. 20 Bowdoin, 12 p.m.
Tue. 27 at No. 2 TCNJ, 7 p.m.
Thu. 29 at Montclair St., 3 p.m.
Sat. 31 at No. 14 Amherst, 2 p.m.
(03/08/18 12:29am)
The fourth-ranked women’s lacrosse team opened their season last weekend with a pair of road wins. The Panthers showed no signs of any first-game nerves against Bates in Lewiston, Maine, as they toppled the Bobcats 12–5 on Saturday, March 3. And the solid start did not stop there, as the team travelled to Springfield, Massachusetts, on Sunday, March 4, where they came from behind to beat Springfield 7–3.
The Panthers proudly flaunted the strides they made during the offseason with the seamless team dynamic they exhibited from the moment they took the field against Bates.
Middlebury was the first to notch a tally. Within the first three minutes of play, Casey O’Neill ’19 slapped in a pass from Georgia Carroll ’18. Soon after, Carroll would take matters into her own hands, scoring her first goal of the season. Kirsten Murphy ’21 then doubled the Middlebury total in the course of 11 seconds as she hammered two more shots past the Bates goalie. Just after the halfway mark of the first half, Hollis Perticone ’18 added a goal to make the score 5–0.
Despite their comfortable lead, the Panthers kept their heads down and kept their pace up. Sara DiCenso ’19 and Perticone combined for a pair of goals as the first half wound down, both assisted by Carroll, which made it a 7–0 game. Before the half came to a close, Bates snuck past the Panther goalie, narrowing the lead to six.
Despite coming out of the locker room for the second half with a six-goal lead, Carroll did not take her foot off the gas. She once again fought her way past the Bobcat defense to find the back of the net twice in the first 10 minutes of the half, which earned her a hat trick to go along with four assists.
Carroll commented on the team’s energy going into the competition, noting that the fourth-ranked visitors trekked confidently to Maine and were especially excited for the chance to start their season off with a bang.
“We were excited to get started as preseason was coming to a close, and I think that nervous excitement showed itself on the field,” said Carroll. “Our game plan was to balance pushing the pace and settling into our set attack/defense. We definitely had some first-game jitters, but we are proud of the persistence and grit that made this weekend a success.”
Julia Keith ’20 soundly defended the Panthers’ goal, making five saves in the course of the Middlebury victory.
With their first win under their belts, the Panthers journeyed to Springfield on Sunday looking to finish their opening weekend strong.
This time, however, the Panthers had to play from behind, as it was Springfield who grabbed the early lead. Eleven minutes into the game, the referee awarded the Pride a free position opportunity, on which Springfield’s Ann Mahoney managed to capitalize by finding the back of the net.
After almost 11 minutes of scoreless play, Middlebury responded with a goal by Jenna McNicholas ’19, despite playing a player down after a penalty. Although that would end the first-half scoring, Middlebury did have multiple scoring opportunities before time ran out.
Emerging from the locker room deadlocked with Springfield at one goal apiece, the Panthers quickly conceded another Springfield goal only minutes into the second half. Springfield’s Kate Sarnacki scored an unassisted, man-down goal just over a minute into the second half. Things then stayed quiet for a better part of the next eight minutes, until Sarnacki’s teammates Kayla Schroeher and Shelby Corsano combined to find the back of the net for Springfield, which increased the Panthers’ deficit to 3–1 with just over 20 minutes left in the game.
Although the Panthers outshot their hosts 30–9, Springfield held their margin until deep into the second half. The Panthers still had yet to narrow the two-goal deficit by the 12-minute mark in the second period. However, this would soon prove to mark the first time this season that the team faced and overcame adversity.
With three-fourths of the game gone, the Panthers came back firing in the remaining time they had to mount a comeback. Not only were they successful, but they did so by scoring six unanswered goals — the first four coming in a four-minute span — to close out the game. Carroll racked up two more goals to her total, and Henley Hall ’19, McDonagh, Perticone, and Murphy all found the back of the net before the final whistle.
Keith would stop Springfield from increasing their total, as she racked up three second-half saves to help the Panthers close out the contest with a 7–3 score.
Carroll reflected on the team’s confidence going against next weekend’s challengers.
“We are grateful to have these two games under our belt,” said Carroll. “This weekend was a great learning opportunity and will serve to build our confidence. This week we will be ramping up the pressure in practice and continuing to push each other.”
The Panthers will be back in action on Saturday, March 10, when they will travel to New London, Connecticut, to face conference rival Connecticut College.
(02/28/18 11:52pm)
With the conference playoffs of winter sports coming to a close, spring sports practices are well underway. Although the crisp Vermont weather may not be ready for women’s lacrosse to get on the outdoor turf, the Panthers are ready to dive into another season. After losing in the NCAA Regional Final against The College of New Jersey last year, they are ready to avenge their defeat and get another NCAA ring for their collection, after taking the sixth national title in 2016.
Middlebury loses four players from last season’s team that finished second in the Nescac and lost in the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament.
“We lost four key teammates to graduation, but gained eight incredible first years and have twenty-four uniquely excellent returners on the 2018 squad,” said Evie Keating ’18, one of Middlebury’s three team captains. “We’re lucky to have such a wide range of skill sets and personalities on our team and to have so many great leaders within each class. Definitely don’t sleep on the first-years. We have the best 2021s out there! Each one of them has so much to offer to the team both on and off the field. They will certainly be large contributors to the team’s success this year.”
Kate Livesay, a former Middlebury defender, enters her third season as head coach of the Panthers. The four-time Nescac Coach of the Year, she coached Trinity before returning to her alma mater, and two-time national champion will attempt to push her team towards another championship season.
Katie Ritter ’15 is Livesay’s newest assistant coach. During her playing career at Middlebury, Ritter was a two-time All-American. Ritter knows the ins and outs of Panther lacrosse, in addition to being a Middlebury native, and the girls are thrilled to have her on the coaching staff.
Hayden Garrett ’20, who had been sidelined with an ACL injury for first season, commented on Katie Ritter joining the coaching staff.
“Katie Ritter has been an amazing addition to our coaching staff this season and she brings excitement and enthusiasm to our team, as well as a deep knowledge of the game,” said Hayden Garrett ’20. “One of my favorite things about our coaching staff is that both grew up in the town, graduated from Middlebury, and have so many personal connections to the community.”
The team has been training hard over the course of the last few months to get ready for their first matchups in the following weeks. They worked to get their fitness back and on more technical skills.
Middlebury returns its second and third leading scorers from last season, Emma McDonagh ’19 and Hollis Perticone ’18. Perticone was the 2017 Nescac Player of the Year, and scored 33 goals, along with assisting on 11 more. McDonagh tallied 40 goals and 15 assists, and Georgia Carroll ’18 scored 9 goals and assisted on 14 more in only 13 games.
Sara DiCenso ’19 returns in the midfield after starting all 21 games last season. Keating and Alex White ’19 will bolster the Middlebury defense.
The Panther’s opening day will be on Saturday, March 3 on the road against Bates followed by a matchup against Springfield on Sunday, March 4.
(02/22/18 2:35am)
Kenyon Arena was roaring with a rambunctious crowd last weekend as Middlebury fans spilled in each and every door for the last action of the 2017-18 season. In their first contest on Saturday, Feb. 17, the Panthers fell to Hamilton 1–0 after the Continentals found the back of the net in the final period. On Sunday, Feb. 18, the Panthers tied Amherst 2–2 — demonstrating the strides the team has made throughout the season, as they fell to the Mammoths 4–1 just over a month ago.
Knowing that these two games would be their last of what has been a tough campaign, the Panthers gave it all they had, sliding around the ice to defend their net. Despite their strongest efforts, Hamilton scored the only goal of Saturday’s matchup in the third period to win 1–0.
Stephen Klein ’18 was a hero once again, blocking shot after shot in the first 40 minutes of play.
Although both teams had many offensive opportunities to take the lead, it was Hamilton who finally found a way past Klein six minutes into the third stanza. Nick Ursitti did not give the Panthers a fair chance when he nailed a shot inside right post of the host’s territory.
Klein rounded out the game with a resounding 36 saves compared to the Hamilton goalie’s 27.
The following day the Panthers skated onto the ice looking to close out their regular season with a bang. Earlier this season they lost to Amherst and were hungry to leave their season with a win over their rivals. But, after a hard-fought campaign, Middlebury tied the Mammoths 2–2.
Middlebury opened the competition with flashes of strong offense and nearly got on the scoreboard when a shot by Kamil Tkaczuk ’19 was deflected by the Amherst goalie.
The game held scoreless until the 10:52 mark when Thomas Lindstrom skillfully drove the puck past Klein. But Middlebury was not ready to let their season end on that note. Just over five minutes later, Eric Jeremiah ’21 earned his first goal of the season that would bring the teams back even at 1–1 as they headed in for the first intermission.
The Nescac foes entered the second period prepared to nail down the hatches on the defensive side of the ice. With strong defensive plays from both sides, it was tough for either to breach the opposing barriers.
It was not until the 7:45 mark that Jack Fitzgerald forced his way through and tallied a second goal for the Mammoths, putting the Panthers back into a one-goal hole, 2–1.
In the last game of the season, the Panthers would not go down this easily.
Ten minutes later they answered the purple visitors with the support of a noisy arena behind them. Off a power play, Mitch Allen ’20 stepped up to the challenge and found Owen Powers ’20 who powered the puck home to knot the score.
The Panthers went into the third stanza ready to leave it all on the ice, as this would be their last chance to skate in Kenyon until next winter. While the Mammoths toppled Middlebury’s defense — they got 23 shots off compared to the Panther’s four — Klein held his own in the net and sent the game into overtime knotted at 2, where the score would remain.
It was Klein’s last chance to wear blue and white and he concludes his career in the annals of Panther history with a record 2,122 saves in his four years and 730 career stops in this season.
Klein commented on his final appearance in Kenyon Arena.
“Playing my last game as a Panther came with a lot of mixed emotions,” Klein said. “It’s crazy to look back over the past four years and how fast it all went by. We had a lot of ups and downs in my time here, but after my last game I found that only the really good moments stuck with me and that I am very grateful for all of those memories.”
The Panthers finish the 2017–2018 season with a record of 4–17–3, but they look forward to an optimistic future as many of their top players are underclassmen.
Klein left the team with some words of wisdom from his past four years in Vermont.
“I think the best advice is to treat every game like it means everything for your season,” Klein said. “With only 24 games it is incredibly hard to dig yourself out of a hole. We were in a lot of close games this year that we couldn’t find a way to win and I think there is a great group of players returning next year that are going to find a way to take that next step we were missing.”
(02/16/18 11:33pm)
While the rest of campus enjoyed February break either in the sun or on the slopes, the men’s hockey team celebrated the competition in the rink. Middlebury earned a tie against both Conn. College on and Tufts, leaving the weekend before break with a 2–2 score against the Camels on Friday, Jan. 26, and a 1–1 count, Saturday, Jan. 27, against the Jumbos on Saturday. The men then fell to three conference teams over the next two weekends, losing to Wesleyan 3–1 on Friday, Feb. 2, Trinity 3–0 on Saturday, Feb. 3, and Williams twice by a score of 2–1 on Friday, Feb. 9 and Saturday, Feb. 10.
The Panthers kicked off the last weekend of January hosting the Camels in Kenyon Arena and looked to avenge a 5–0 loss earlier in the season.
Both teams’ defenses held tough throughout the first period, preventing either offense from gaining any advantage. It was not until five minutes into the second stanza when Conn. College’s Mason Evans capitalized off a power play. He slid a shot past the Panther goalie to lift his team ahead, a lead that would hold until the third period.
The hosts found the back of the Camel net just 56 seconds into the last period. Frank Cosolito ’20 worked his way past the Conn. College defense with ease, when he slapped the puck giving the Panthers their place on the board. The pressure was on both teams as they skated around Kenyon searching for an opportunity. The Camels were the first to respond five minutes later when Ryan Petti reacted quickly to his teammate’s rebounded attempt, and knocked a shot past Middlebury.
With time running out, the Panthers were anxious to equalize the competition. Although the Conn. College defense was impenetrable, Kamil Tkaczuk ’19 finished off Cosolito’s rejected effort with only a few minutes remaining, tying the game at two. Neither team scored in overtime, and the final score remained.
After their 5–0 loss earlier in the year, Middlebury tied Conn. College this time around, holding their own in Kenyon Arena.
“I think for us it comes down to being focused and playing our game for the whole 60 minutes,” said Danny Tighe ’20. “Earlier in the year we came out flat against them, whereas this time around we were ready to go from the start.”
On Saturday, Jan. 27, Middlebury faced Tufts for the second time this season, after beating the Jumbos 2–0 in December, and hoped to sweep the visitors. Their hopes were not realized as the Jumbos put up a tough fight, tying the Panthers 1–1.
Neither team was able to edge past one another in the first period. Stephen Klein ’18 played well all game, allowing only one of the 40 shots on goal past him.
“Klein has been playing great in net for us, but we just need to bury more of our own offensive chances,” said Tighe. “I think that starts with us placing heightened emphasis on executing when we work on scoring in practice.”
At the 9:31 minute mark in the second period, Tufts broke the tie. Ross Delabruere quickly jumped on a rebound, and Tufts led 1–0. But Middlebury had an answer for the visiting Bostonians less than eight minutes later, when Vincent Gisonti ’18 scored his third goal of the season on a power play opportunity. Brendan Dawson ’20’s shot was blocked, but Gisonti stayed with the play and hammered the rebound past the Jumbo goalie, tying the game at one. The score stay that way, as neither team could break through the rest of regulation or in overtime.
The Panthers traveled to Connecticut the following weekend to face Wesleyan on Friday, Feb. 2, looking at another opportunity to redeem themselves after dropping their last matchup 6–1.
Neither the Panthers nor their opponents scored in the first period for the third straight game, but Wesleyan snuck their way past Klein at 10:12 in the middle period on a powerplay. Four minutes later, the Cardinals doubled their lead when Matthew Zandi slapped the puck Klein
In the final stanza, Brett Dineen ’20 found the back of the net to put Middlebury on the board. The Panthers hope of knotting the score was quashed soon after when Jordan Jancze increased the Cardinal lead to two. Middlebury could not respond to that goal, and fell to Wesleyan 3–1.
On Saturday, Feb. 3, the men continued their journey in Connecticut when they faced Trinity. The men once again fell to the No. 5 Bantams by the same 3–0 score.
Following the same pattern, Middlebury defense proved impermeable in the first period but could not score either, entering the locker room knotted at zero still. It took the Bantams until the 17:34 mark in the second period to get by Middlebury. Michael Grande earned Trinity their first of three goals after a creating his own opportunity in a remarkable effort.
The Panthers refused to back down from this one-goal deficit. They continued to hold Trinity at bay, despite the Bantams offensive onslaught on Klein.
Trinity closed out the game in the final period. Ryan Pfeffer hammered in an easy shot six minutes into the stanza, giving the hosts a two-goal lead. Nicholas Polsinelli followed up Pfeffer, scoring on an empty net to give Trinity a 3–0 victory.
Heading into this past weekend, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 9 and 10, the Panthers had two good opportunities to topple a Williams team in the bottom half of the Nescac standings as well.
In the first contest on Friday at Williams, neither team scored in the first period. This continued Middlebury’s trend of strong defense, despite Williams significant advantage in shots. Finally, 10 minutes into the second period, Gisonti broke the silence. Off a Williams turnover, he broke past the Ephs to drive home his fourth goal of the season.
Gisonti’s goal fired up his teammates, as well as the Williams offense. So much so, that the Ephs has a response at the 17:40 mark in the same period. The hosts matched the visitor’s tally when C.J. Shugart got past Klein to make it anybody’s game once more.
Both teams grinded for the win in the final stanza but neither could break the tie in a highly contested third period, and the game entered overtime.
With no score in the first 4:30 of overtime, Middlebury pulled its goalie, needing a win to if they wanted to move out of last place and into the Nescac playoffs. But the move backfired when Williams’ Colby Cretella found the back of the empty net with ten seconds remaining to give Williams the 2–1 win.
Middlebury trailed Williams in shots on goal by 22 shots (43–21), as Klein turned in another impressive performance, stopping 41 shots.
On Saturday, Feb. 10, the two teams returned to the ice, this time in Kenyon Arena.
For the seventh game in a row, the Panthers held off their opponents in the first period. Although the Panthers did not score, they Trevor Turnbull ’20 and Kamil Tkaczuk ’19 had separate opportunities when they almost did beat the Williams netminder.
In the second period, C.J. Shugart again proved to be a danger to the hosts. Within the first minute, he took advantage of a power play and redirected a shot from his teammate to put his team in the lead. But, the junior from Toronto was not satisfied yet. With just a few moments remaining in the period, Shugart’s teammate found him after collecting a rebound, and whipped a shot past the Panthers.
Despite going down by two, the hosts were determined to find a way past Williams. The Panthers found some life in the eighth minute of the final stanza. Alex Heinritz ’21 slid in his second goal of the season on a power play to give bring his team within one and give it a fighting chance.
Middlebury found some opportunities in the final remaining minutes, but was unable to finish them off, losing its fourth straight game.
Middlebury will look for a way to end its losing streak when they play their last two games of the regular season this weekend. Mathematically eliminated from the Nescac playoffs, the Panther seniors will play their last two games in the blue and white on Friday, Feb. 17, when they host Hamilton, and Saturday, Feb. 18 when they welcome Amherst to Kenyon Arena.