Men's Soccer Back from the Brink

Author: Dave Freedman

The Middlebury men's soccer team got back on track in outstanding fashion with two wins this past week, securing a home game in the first round of the NESCAC Championship. The Panthers blanked St. Michael's College 2-0 on Thursday and traveled to Tufts two days later to earn a solid 2-1 victory.

Rebounding from two NESCAC games in which the team was shutout, the team has put itself in a good position to vie for the conference tournament title by finally regaining the scoring touch that helped the squad stay undefeated for so long in the beginning of the season.

"Our lack of scoring was basically the issue that was brought up before the Williams game, in that we needed to score some goals against the top teams, something we hadn't done," said forward John Rusten '05, who scored a goal in each game. "We felt a sense of urgency going into the St. Michael's game, we wanted to get on top early."

It would take only 20 minutes for Rusten to help the Panthers do just that. Co-captain Pat Saunders '04 sent a through ball to Rusten inside the penalty box, who was pulled down by the St. Michael's defender. A penalty kick was awarded, and that Rusten put it away wish ease.

The Panthers notched their second goal in the final minute of the first half when J.B. Gerber '05 put home a ball off an excellent cross from first-year Winston Rains. First-year goalie Zach Toth made three saves on the day, earning his second shut-out in as many games.

Middlebury found its scoring touch even earlier in its NESCAC match against the Jumbos.

This time, Rusten didn't waste anytime in finding the back of the net when he put a ball past the Tufts' keeper after just one minute off a crisp pass from John Sales '07.

"We couldn't have asked for a better start, scoring in the first minute, but we could have taken better care of our chances throughout the first half and gotten another one for a little breathing room going into the break," Rusten commented. "But Sales took care of that later."

Fifteen minutes into the second half Sales hit Middlebury's third from almost 25 yards out. He collected the ball, took a few steps towards goal and blasted a low curling shot past the opposing keeper. Tufts scored its only goal with six seconds remaining, keeping Craig Hirsch '05 from adding to his five shut-out performances on the season.

The Panthers have finally found their finishing touch again, supporting the team's strong midfield and nearly impenetrable defense. They will play Connecticut College in their final regular season game this Saturday before hosting their opening-round NESCAC game the following weekend.