Edition III: February 17, 2004

Sports Covered:
Women's Hockey
Indoor Track
Skiing
Women's Basketball
Men's Basketball
Men's Hockey

WOMEN'S HOCKEY PICKS UP TWO HUGE ROAD WINS IN MAINE

The Middlebury College women's hockey team kept itself alive in the hunt for the top seed in the upcoming NESCAC Tournament by winning a pair of games at Colby and Bowdoin. If Middlebury and Bowdoin win out, the top seed will be determined by a coin toss with all other tie-breakers being equal.

At Colby, the Panthers used a goal in each period on their way to the win. First-year players Shannon Tarrant (Brookfield, Conn.) and Abby Kurtz-Phelan (Denver, Colo.) scored, along with junior Lorna Gifis (Princeton, N.J.). Senior Kati Madouros (White Plains, N.Y.) made 12 saves in goal as Middlebury out shot Colby, 45-12.

The next day, Tarrant scored just 1:17 into the second period to give Middlebury a 1-0 lead at Bowdoin. The Polar Bears tied the game in the second before the Panthers regained the lead 4:01 into the third period on a goal from rookie Shannon Sylvester (Randolph, N.J.). Bowdoin again came back, scoring the equalizer at the 13:41 mark of the third period. The game remained tied until sophomore Emily Quizon (Chino Hills, Calif.) beat the Bowdoin netminder with 52 seconds remaining for the game-winner. Sophomore Kate Kogut (Springfield, Mass.) made 25 saves in goal.

* Women's hockey record: 18-3

* Up next: 2/21 vs. Williams - 7:00

INDOOR TRACK ENJOYS SUCCESS AT WESLEYAN AND TUFTS

The Panther indoor track team was in action last weekend with several impressive finishes at Wesleyan. Two athletes, first-year runners Makely Lyon (Portland, Ore.) and Alex Wellman (Charlotte, N.C.), both qualified for the Division III New England's with their performances. Lyon did so in the 3,000 meters with a time of 11:01.20, while Wellman garnered the honor in the 55-meter hurdles with a time of 8.16 seconds.

Some athletes were in action at Tufts as junior Jon Erwin (Rumson, N.J.) and first-year runner Meira Lifson (Edina, Minn.) both qualified for New England's. Erwin broke his own school record with a time of 8:56.11 in the 3,000 meters. Lifson cleared 9'1" in the pole vault to qualify for next weekend's meet.

* Indoor teams in action at Wesleyan and Tufts

* Up next: 2/21 @ New England's

SKI TEAMS FINISH THIRD AT DARTMOUTH

The Middlebury College nordic and alpine ski teams saw their carnival winning streak come to an end as Dartmouth won its own carnival for the second consecutive year. The Panthers placed third overall, with Vermont coming in second.

In the women's GS, junior Jessica Smith (Rockport, Maine) led the Panthers in fifth place with a time of 2:09.51, two seconds off the winning pace. Placing 13th in the race was senior Brie Pike-Sprenger (West Dover, Vt.) in (2:10.85), followed closely by senior Laura Scripture (Harrisonburg, Va.) in 14th (2:10.92). In the slalom race, Smith again led the pack with a fourth place finish in 1:42.11, just over a second off the winning time. Placing seventh was first-year racer Lindsay Brush (Charlotte, Vt.) with a time of 1:42.73, followed by Pike-Sprenger in 11th (1:43.53).

On the men's side, senior Fred Emich (Littleton, Colo.) was the top finisher in the GS, placing third with a time of 2:03.28, .30 seconds off the top finish. Junior Peter Phillips (New York, N.Y.) was next in fifth place (2:04.01), followed by senior Eric Rygg (Belvedere, Calif.) in 10th (2:05.12). In the slalom race, sophomore David Coriell (Killington, Vt.) led the pack in seventh place with a time of 1:40.80, two seconds off the winning time. Placing 11th was Rygg with a time of 1:41.27, followed by junior John Rusten (Federal Way, Wash.) in 13th place in 1:41.32.

On the nordic side, the Middlebury women dominated the 5K race, placing skiers in second, third and fifth places. Sophomore Claire Anderson (Whitefish, Mont.) led the pack with a time of 14:35, 11 seconds off the winning time. Placing third was senior Kate Newick (Canterbury, N.H.) in 14:36, followed by senior Kate Whitcomb (Worthington, Mass.) in fifth place with a time of 14:45. Newick led the team in the 15K race, placing fourth in 56:17, 2:24 off the winning time. First-year racer Virginia Hamilton (Aspen, Colo.) came in eighth in the race (56:56), while Whitcomb placed 13th (57:10).

Pacing the men in the 10K race was sophomore Garrott Kuzzy (Minneapolis, Minn.), who placed eighth in 27:02, 1:16 off the winning time. Senior Marshall Greene (Spokane, Wash.) came in 12th overall (27:15), while sophomore Jake Whitcomb (Worthington, Mass.) was 16th (27:41). In the men's 20K race, Kuzzy again led the pack with a fourth place finish in 1:07.39, 1:26 behind the winner. First-year racer Beau Baldock (Jackson, Wyo.) was next for Middlebury in sixth place (1:08.30), while Whitcomb rounded out the scorers in 11th place with a time of 1:09.25.

* Ski team places third at Dartmouth

* Up next: 2/20-21 @ Williams Carnival

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL HEADED TO NESCAC TOURNEY

The Panther women's basketball team is headed to the NESCAC Tournament for the fourth year in the four years of the tournament.Middlebury will be the seventh-seed and will travel to second-seededWesleyan this Saturday for a quarterfinal match-up at 3:00 p.m.

Last week, the Panthers didn't end the regular season on a good note as they lost to Tufts and Bates in the Pepin Gym. Tufts and Middlebury played evenly for a majority of the game with the Jumbos holding a slim advantage. The Panthers took their first lead of the game with 10:58 left to play in the second half, but Tufts answered and never trailed again as they went on for the 77-62 win. Junior Alexis Hollinger (New London, N.H.) led the team with 18 points, while senior Alexis Batten (Avalon, N.J.) scored 13and grabbed 14 rebounds.

The next day wasn't pretty as Middlebury ran into a red-hot Bates team, falling 80-44. The Bobcats didn't seem to miss on the afternoon, shooting .548 from the floor and forcing 25 Middlebury turnovers. Sophomore Kate Fehsenfeld (Zionsville, Ind.) paced the scorers with 13 points.

* Women's basketball record: 11-11

* Up next: 2/21 @ Wesleyan (NESCAC Quarterfinals) - 3:00

MEN'S BASKETBALL MAKES NESCAC TOURNAMENT

The Middlebury College men's basketball team enjoyed the luck of the draw as they received a bid to the NESCAC Tournament. Colby, Tufts andMiddlebury finished in a seventh place tie, with only eight teams taking part in the tournament. All the tie-breaking procedures were even, forcing the league to put all three team's names in a hat, and draw two. The Panthers were drawn, as were the Jumbos of Tufts, leaving Middlebury with the eighth seed. They will take on #1 Williams next Saturday in the quarterfinals at 3:00 p.m.

The week was not a good one for Middlebury as they lost at Skidmore before dropping a pair of NESCAC road games at Tufts and Bates. At Skidmore, the Thoroughbreds shot .483 from the floor and were able to hold on for the 72-67 win. The Panthers shot well, .443, but it wasn't enough to pick up the road win. Junior Clark Read (Pepper Pike, Ohio) led the team with 16 points on 7-7 shooting, first-year player Bobby Marcoux (Campbell Hall, N.Y.) added 14, while junior Simon Behan (Dublin, Ireland) scored a dozen.

The Panthers shot under 30 percent from the floor as they suffered a 78-66 loss at Tufts. Middlebury took 30 shots from behind the three-point arc, connecting on 11. Senior Nate Anderson (Hinesburg, Vt.) led the team with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while junior Adam Sinoway (Harrisburg, Pa.) also netted 13 points.

A 21-4 run towards the end of the first half gave the Bobcats of Bates a comfortable 18-point halftime lead. The Panthers cut it to 15 early in the second half before Bates slowly increased its lead on the way to an 81-58 win. Anderson led Middlebury with 13 points.

* Men's basketball record: 12-11

* Up next: 2/21 @ Williams (NESCAC Quarterfinals) - 3:00

MEN'S HOCKEY WINS TWO OF THREE

The Panther men's hockey team won two of three games last week, clinching the top seed for the upcoming NESCAC Tournament.

Middlebury scored four second period goals on its way to an 8-1 win over Skidmore in a non-league game. The Panthers opened the scoring 2:49 into the period as senior Mike Velez (S. Windsor, Conn.) found senior Kevin Cooper (Mississauga, Ont.) with a drop pass before the senior buried it with a low wrister. Cooper made it a 2-0 game as he roofed a shot on a breakaway.

Middlebury took a 3-0 lead on a rebound goal by first-year player John Sales (Chatham, Ill.) at 4:19 of the second period. Seniors Adam Foote (New Hartford, N.Y.) and John Dawson (New Canaan, Conn.), along with sophomore Shady Young (Bethlehem, Pa.) scored goals in the final 7:56 of the period to give the Panthers a 6-0 lead after two. Junior Levi Doria (Ripton, Vt.) made it a 7-0 game before Skidmore got on the board at the 10:13 mark with a snap shot from the slot. Dawson answered with his second goal of the game just 50 seconds later to make it an 8-1 final. Sophomore Yen-I Chen (Rigaud, Que.) made 17 saves in goal for the Panthers.

At Wesleyan, seven different players scored as Middlebury out shot the Cardinals 43-12 on its way to a 7-1 win. Dawson and first-year player Evgeny Saidachev (Gig Harbor, Wash.) each had a goal and two assists as senior Marc Scheuer (Pt. Claire, Que.) made 11 saves in netTrinity ended Middlebury's 10-game winning streak as they handed the Panthers a 2-1 loss. Trinity took a 1-0 lead just 1:58 in the game before the Panthers were finally able to tie the contest at 4:17 of the third period with a goal from first-year player Darwin Hunt (Winnetka, Ill.). The Bantams came right back, scoring the game-winner at 6:04 as they skated to the 2-1 win. Middlebury out shot Trinity 44-28, as Scheuer made 26 saves in goal.

* Men's hockey record: 19-3

* Up next: 2/20 vs. St. Michael's - 7:00, 2/21 vs. Norwich - 4:00

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