Women’s lacrosse takes nail-biter over Jumbos

The Middlebury Panthers advanced to 9-4 last week with two strong wins over Skidmore and Tufts. On April 21, the Panthers trumped Skidmore 19-2 on Kohn Field, furthering their streak of now 24 wins against the Thoroughbreds. The Panthers scored 14 goals in a row, including netting two in an impressive 18-second period.
Middlebury had nine different scores: Sally Ryan ’11 led with six goals of her own, followed by Lucy Jackson ’12 with three tallies and Ellen Halle ’13 with two goals and two assists. Casey Flight ’14 earned her first collegiate goal and Michaela Colbert ’13 won six draw controls in the contest. Riding off this decisive victory, the Panthers traveled to Tufts on April 23.
“After a couple of close NESCAC games against Trinity, Amherst and Colby,” said Jackson, “I think it was huge to come out on top against Skidmore, giving us the confidence we needed for the Tufts game.”
The 11th-ranked Panthers took an early 3-0 lead against the #13 ranked Jumbos thanks to a goal and an assist from Halle. Tufts fired back to set the score at 4-4, but the Panthers did not let down and Margaret Souther ’13 capitalized off a pass from Ryan with 4:30 remaining in the half to give the Panthers a 5-4 advantage at intermission.
The second half was an exciting one; the Jumbos came out strong and took a 6-5 lead. The Panthers responded with goals from Souther and Ryan before the teams traded the next six goals back-and-forth. Tufts scored at 14:22 of the second half to produce the games sixth tie at 9-9.
Off the next draw, Ryan took possession of the ball, bringing it down the field to fire home the game-winning goal with 14:10 remaining in the game. Ryan now leads the NESCAC conference with goals and goals per game.
“Saturday’s game was a true team win,” said Liz Garry ’12, “From the little things like making good passes and catches, to scoring big goals and getting draw controls, to all the cheering on the side lines; everyone played such a big part in the win.”
Because of junior goalie Lily Nguyen’s ’12 crucial save off a Jumbo free-position shot, a strong effort by Ryan, Souther and Garry, and great, composed team play all around, the Panthers were able to stall the rest of the game until about the two minute mark.
Here, Tufts junior Kelly Cakert caused a turnover and captured the ground ball.
“When we did lose the ball, the defense did a great job of holding their own and getting it right back,” said Souther. “Heather Marrison [’13] had some key blocks towards the end of the game.”
After a time out, the Jumbos turned the ball over before they could take any more shots against the Panthers and thus Middlebury was able to walk away with the victory.  Nguyen, who has the highest save percentage in the NESCAC conference, had four saves in the contest.  Halle applauded her team’s ability to remain calm despite Tufts’ high-pressure defense.
“It was a great team win as everyone definitely had a part,” she said. “We played a very smart, controlled game that I think culminated in our successful stall at the end of the game.” Ryan agreed with Halle’s appreciation of the effort of everyone on field.
“Everyone contributed in one way or another which was why we were so successful,” she said.
Looking ahead, the Panthers are ready to peak in the postseason and redeem their first round loss last year against the Colby Mules.
Middlebury travels to Williams this Friday eager to end the regular season on a high note.