Football Falls in Homecoming Game

Author: Andreas Apostolatos

The Middlebury football team was dealt a 16-0 loss to Trinity College on October 25, a sour note during Homecoming weekend that put the Panthers at 2-4 for the season. With two games left on the 2003 schedule, Middlebury will need to win both in order to match last season's 4-4 overall record.

"It was obviously disappointing to lose to Trinity," commented senior captain Dave Nikiel. "[Trinity] is a good team. The came in and played well, and we didn't play as well as we could have."

As heartbreaking as it is to be shut out on Homecoming weekend, it is necessary to note that the Panthers were up against a very strong Trinity team that has yet to lose this season and boats one of the best defences in Division III football right now. The Bantams (6-0) came out right from the start, as they managed to put points on the scoreboard in their first possession of the game with a 25-yard field goal with 7:12 left in the opening quarter. Middlebury seemed poised to bounce back from the early 3-0 deficit and take control when quarterback Mike Keenan '05 found Mike Murray '05 for a 45-yard completion that put the Panthers in prime scoring position. A pair of holding penalties - the first of which negated a touchdown drive by Matt Wolf '03.5 - put Middlebury back to the 22-yard-line, where a 3rd down field goal attempt by Andy Bohlin '05 went awry.

The Panthers had another good chance to score in the latter stages of the second quarter when Phil Reiff '05 managed to intercept a Trinity pass and give Middlebury possession 28 yards from the end zone. Bohlin's field-goal attempt was blocked, and the Panthers went into the intermission behind by a modest score of 3-0. At this point the game was potentially up for grabs and whoever came out in the second half and wanted it the most would likely emerge with teh victory. The large home crowd was optimistic for an onslaught from the Panthers at the beginning of the second half, however it was the Bantams who came storming out of the locker room to commence the game's second half. Trinity needed just six plays to complete a 64-yard run that increased the lead to 10-0 just 2:15 into the third quarter. In the final period, the Bantams finalized the score at 16-0 when a pass by Keenan was intercepted and followed by a 41-yard return.

While Panthers were largely unable to get the offense going against one of the best defenses in the country, the second half did showcase the defensive strength of Middlebury's Richard Decembrele '05, who collected a pair of interceptions to go along with his 14 tackles and a sack. Decembrele was given both NESCAC co-defensive player of the week, and ECAC Northeast player of the week accolades. "When we came into the season, our goal was to win the NESCAC championship," added Nikiel. "It is disappointing that we can no longer aim for that, but we're focusing on getting wins in our last two games so that we can match last season's final record."

Middlebury will host a weak 1-5 Hamilton team in its final home game of the season at 12:30 p.m. this Saturday at Youngman Field while the following weekend, the Panthers will travel to Tufts (4-2) to close out the 2003 campaign.