Women approach do-or-die weekend

Coming on the heels of two tough losses against Maine rivals Bowdoin and Colby, the Panthers’ game at Trinity this Friday is a make-or-break moment for the women’s basketball team. A win guarantees them a spot in the NESCAC playoff tournament while a loss spells the end of the season. Middlebury is currently tied for seventh in the standings with Trinity both teams are 2-5 in conference play yet the team remains confident in their chances of victory.

“We beat them last year, so we’re really pumped up and optimistic about the game,” said Maddie Moreau ’12. In preparation for this epic matchup, the team is focusing their practices on what they do well — their full-court press and pressure — since these are elements within their control. Moreau added that, because Trinity has a lot of guards, the Panthers’ intense pressure will be an effective game strategy.

While the stakes are high this weekend, forward and rebounding ace Stephany Surrette ’12 notes that the team’s attitude is very positive.
“We need to take it one game at a time, so right now, all our energies are focused on Trinity,” said Surrette. The Panthers have demonstrated that they can learn game-by-game and put frustrating defeats behind them. In this past weekend’s doubleheader against Bowdoin and Colby, the Polar Bears used high pressure to force 34 Panther turnovers, which resulted in a 61-45 loss. However, the team turned this around on Saturday and used its press to harness the Mules’ offense.

Against Bowdoin, the Panthers were continually struggling to keep the game within reach, bringing the score within nine with 2:47 left to play. For the most part, however, they allowed the Polar Bears to set the pace of the game. Bowdoin maintained a double-digit lead for large parts of the first and second halves.

The following day, the team came out to a better start, leading 11-4 after five minutes of play. The game went back and forth for the remainder of play, as both teams tenaciously fought to gain a solid lead. Late in the second half, Colby pulled away and held on for a 63-54 victory, but the Panthers won a moral victory in demonstrating considerable improvement from the previous day’s loss.

“We were neck-and-neck with them the whole time, then the game just slipped away,” said Moreau of the Colby game, as the Mules made several free throws in the final minutes to put the game away. Despite the end result, the Panthers have several things to be proud of about their Colby game, not least of which was the tenacious play of guard Lauren Sanchez ’11, who played relentlessly on both sides of the court and led the team in scoring for both games.

This week, the team is concentrating mainly on the future, and is channeling all of its hard work and determination into continuing its season. After the Trinity game on Friday, the team travels to Amherst to take on the top-seeded team in the country. With big games on the horizon, the team’s attitude is stalwart in the face of these challenges.

“We’re really excited to play Trinity and Amherst and have high expectations for the rest of the season,” said captain Kaitlyn Fallon ’10. “I’m extremely confident that our hard work will pay off.” Underclassmen are equally aware of the importance of these games.

“We’ve worked really hard in practice, and we’re playing for the seniors, so that they can have another week of college basketball,” said Moreau, and if all goes well at Trinity, the team will advance to the NESCAC quarterfinals the following weekend.