SPORTSBRIEFS

Author: RYAN REESE

Panthers grab more accolades

As the men's and women's hockey teams stormed through their respective NESCAC tournaments this past weekend, they also managed to pick up quite a few honors and awards. The women's team placed five players on the All-NESCAC First and Second Teams.

Senior captain Lorna Gifis, Emily Quizon '06, Junior Kate Kogut and Emily McNamara '07 all played their way on to the All-NESCAC First Team, while defender Shannon Tarrant '07 was named as a member of the Second Team.

Kogut was also named NESCAC Player of the Week. While in goal against Williams and Bowdoin, the two-time NESCAC Goalie of the Year denied 56 of 58 shots on her way to a NESCAC Championship.

Quizon was also named as the NESCAC Player of the Year this past week. Quizon has knocked home 16 goals this year and tallied 33 assists. She is ranked third nationally in points per game and she is second in the nation with 1.33 assists per game.

On the men's side of things, Brain Phinney '05 was named to this season's All-NESCAC Second Team. The senior captain has led the Panther defense throughout the year while adding to the team scoring as well.

Phinney and first-year netminder Ross Cherry were honored as Players of the Week as the pair led the charge against Colby and Bowdoin in this weekend's NESCAC tournament. Cherry stopped 75 of 78 shots over two games while Phinney scored a brace and added an assist in the championship game.



Mad River madness reigns

On February 18, Mad River Glen held one of their three Triple Crown events. Friday's event saw the Glen's Vertical Challenge. Not intimidated by the extreme event, a few brave and worthy Middlebury skiers tried their luck and answered the call in a big way. The Vertical Challenge is by far the most grueling of the three events and consists skiers riding the single chair beginning at 9 a.m. and seeing how many runs, top-to-bottom, they can amass by the time the lifts close at 4 p.m. This extreme test of stamina and will power is a call to the toughest of the tough and the most hardcore skiers around. In this year's event, the women's open division of the Challenge was completely dominated by Middlebury students. Sabra, a sophomore and Lea Davison '05, went one-two, both accumulating 24 runs and 48,888 vertical feet of skiing. Dorothy Muirhead '08, a member of the Middlebury ski team, and close friend of the Davisons placed third with 23 runs to complete the Middlebury sweep.



Carlson '05 named an All-Star

Elyse Carlson '05, senior captain of the Middlebury women's basketball squad, netted the honor of being included on the All-NESCAC Second Team.

The senior guard from Braintree, Mass. led the Panthers throughout the regular season and on into the playoffs.

While pouring in nearly 14 points per contest, she ranked first on the team in points per game. She also pulled down close to six rebounds every game - a remarkable feat for a guard.

She also tallied 36 assists and 28 steals in her '04-'05 farewell campaign. As the Panthers' only senior, Carlson was placed in a leadership role and was not afraid to fill those shoes, especially as injuries to key members of the team left the squad a little thin. During a mid-season slump, she carried Middlebury by averaging 20 points per game over a crucial six game stretch.