Women's Hockey Bulldozes Amherst, NESCAC Semis Next

Author: Kate Nerenberg

Taking the ice in the unfamiliar position of second place in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) standings, the Middlebury women's hockey team left no doubts that it is a force to reckon with. Garnering possession of the puck for virtually the entire game, the Panthers dominated Amherst in the first round of the NESCAC Championships. Not only did goalkeeper Kati Madouras '04 register a shutout for the afternoon, the Panthers allowed the Lord Jeffs only six looks at goal. On the other hand, Middlebury was unstoppable: its 47 attempts led to nine goals for the game.
"Our players were so excited," commented Head Coach Bill Mandigo. "It was a home playoff game. The outcome wasn't what we wanted last year, so I think the older players wanted to make amends for that," he added in reference to last season's semifinal loss to Williams when Middlebury was ranked first and hosted the second weekend of the tournament.
The Panthers did not waste any time showing the crowd of 650 that they were more than excited and ready to make waves in this season's tournament. After just 28 seconds, co-captain Angela Kapus '03, assisted by Kristin Reid '04, scored her 17th goal of the season and set the pace for the remainder of the game.
For the next four minutes, the Panthers continued to pound the puck at goal and remained in their offensive zone, one result of a new system Mandigo instituted three weeks ago. Using defensive pushes from Jen Yerigan '06, Jackie Cohen '05 and Jean Butler '04, Amherst's only option was to collapse in front of their goal to stave off the Middlebury offensive forces. These forces limited the Lord Jeffs to few opportunities to score.
Their one chance in the first period came off a strong shot by Renee Sisti from the left side. However, with lightning-quick speed, Madouras deflected the puck and her defense quickly gathered it up before any purple jerseys could get a second look.
Despite the Panthers' continuous pounding on goal, including three shots in a 20-second period, they were only able to convert once more in the first session.
In the last two minutes, the Lord Jeff goalkeeper came out of the crease, causing confusion and a desperate scramble for the puck. Emily Quizon '06 out-hustled the rest of the Amherst defense and came up with the puck behind the goal.
With a few quick strides, Quizon found the back right corner of the net from the left side of the crease. At the close of the first period, the Panthers had out-shot Amherst, 23-1.
As the game progressed, the Panthers continued to dominate. Playing with a strong sense of urgency, the Panthers used crisp, clean passes to move the puck through and around the seemingly stationary Amherst defense. Middlebury simply worked harder than their opponent. Every attempt by the Amherst defense to clear the puck out was easily stifled by the superior Panther work force.
This hard work paid off for Butler, who found herself in front of the goal at the 5:43 mark. After patiently working the puck around, Quizon fed Butler, who scored with a quick flick of her wrist. Middlebury kept the pace at a high level with continuous movement on offense, tiring out the Amherst defense.
Just before the midway point of the second period, Yerigan's shot from the right side was deflected. However, white jerseys swarmed the puck and Erin Neil '03 burned a hole in the back of the net with a left-handed shot at 9:54.
Middlebury had the puck in their offensive zone for so much of the second period that Amherst was not able to register their second shot of the game until the last five minutes.
In the last minute, with textbook-like offense and tactful stick handling, co-captain Audrey Pellerin's '03 rebound was put back by Hannah DeLong '06 to put the Panthers up 5-0.
In the last period, the Panthers started to show only slight signs of fatigue but still managed to post four more goals. Despite their tired legs, the Panthers kept the Lord Jeffs moving with a quick transition and incessant movement on the offensive end. From behind the net, Kapus fed Reid on the left side, who used a right-handed shot to the far side of the goal and put her team up 6-0 at 6:40.
Showcasing the young talent of the Panther squad, Gloria Velez '06 skated from the right side to the left side and quickly put the puck in the net with a low backhanded shot for the seventh goal of the game.
Mandigo says that he was expecting Velez and the rest of his first-year class to have as much of an impact as they have had. "We've counted on them and they have all done a tremendous job," he noted.
Another first-year player, Elizabeth Johnston, assisted on the ninth and final goal of the game at the 13:13 mark. She found Butler, who skated past the entire Amherst defense to pop the puck into the bottom corner of the net. Middlebury finished off the game with the same confidence they had started with, a confidence that deflated the Lord Jeffs.
Although the Amherst offense was still never able to settle the puck on offense, they were able to find a few openings, but Madouras managed to preserve her shutout.
The Panthers could not have asked for a better game going into this weekend's NESCAC semifinal game against Williams at Bowdoin on Saturday.
This is the same position the team found itself in last year, but this season they are coming off an electrifying win.
"Hopefully [the Amherst game] will help us score goals and move the puck through the neutral zone," Mandigo said. "We moved the puck so well and some people saw the ice very well. It was a good day overall."
The Panthers and the Ephs are well-matched teams: in their first meeting, Middlebury won 1-0, but the two teams battled to a 1-1 standstill in their second meeting.
Although they are not looking past Williams, the Panthers do know that if they win they could possibly play nationally-ranked and undefeated Bowdoin, who plays Colby in the other semifinal game, for the championship on Sunday.
The Panthers and the Polar Bears tied both times they went head-to-head this season. Middlebury's upperclassmen also hold a grudge against Bowdoin, the team that knocked the Panthers out of the NCAA tournament last season.
"Bowdoin is excellent. They deserve to be ahead of us. I like our chances, though. Hopefully we will play them," said Mandigo.
And despite the fact that over half his team is underclassmen, he is not concerned. "I'm not worried about inexperience.
Our juniors and seniors are good leaders in the locker room and on the ice," and perhaps in thinking about the recent win, he added, "the way we approach the ice is with confidence."