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Monday, Dec 2, 2024

Men's hoops drop a pair of nailbiters Struggles continue but not for lack of fight

Author: Eri Nosaka

After tough losses to Plymouth State earlier this month, the Middlebury Panthers, failed to pull out a victory against Colby- Sawyer and Skidmore College. Both games were extremely close.

On January 6, the Panthers led from the beginning of the game until the remaining 12 minutes of the game. The Colby-Sawyer Chargers found an opportunity and grabbed it on a pair of free-throws which gave them a two point lead. Clark Read '05 led with 18 points and co-captain Adam Sinoway '05 had 13 points.

With a close score of 72-67, on January 8, Middlebury was defeated by Skidmore College. The Thoroughbreds led by a point at halftime and led by only two with one minute left of the game. However, after a pair of free throws with only 18 seconds left of the game, the Thoroughbreds sealed their victory.

Mike Salek '05 led the Panthers with 17 points, Read had 14 points and Mike Walsh '08 had 10 points. Throughout the game Middlebury struggled on the defensive side of the ball.

"We played hard but we just weren't able to get the rebounds. Skidmore just shot till they scored. In order to do well in the future, we're going to have to work on our rebounding, and just making more shots. " said Salek.

It seems however, that this losing streak has yet to dampen the spirits of the players. Team morale is still high, and the players have yet to lose faith.

"We have had a couple of disappointing games but we have been able to rally around the seniors. The seniors have done a great job to make sure that everyone is staying positive for these upcoming important games. Coach Jeff Brown has also done a good job of pinpointing what each individual can improve on after games which has also helped a lot," said Read.

This Saturday the Panthers will play Connecticut College, which will be the first NESCAC team that they will play. Connecticut College, somewhat similar to Middlebury, has faced difficulties against numerous other colleges. Skidmore's win loss record going into the game on Saturday is 2-9. Hopefully the Middlebury Panthers will be able to commence their NESCAC season with a great start and defeat Connecticut College this Friday.




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