For Release: December 11, 2006

SWIM TEAMS BEST SPRINGFIELD
The Middlebury College men's and women's swimming and diving teams picked up impressive road wins over the weekend at Springfield. The men’s team squeaked out a 151-149 win, while the women were 164-136 winners.

The women were paced by junior Marika Ross (Shorewood, Wis.) with victories in the 200 free (1:58.84) and the 500 free (5:11.39), and senior Rebecca Reingold (Oakland, Calif.) with wins in the 50 backstroke (29.01) and the 50 butterfly (27.95). Earning a win in the 1000 free was first-year racer Katie Soja (Sudbury, Mass.) with a time of 10:38.39, while senior Jennifer Guest (Washington, D.C.) won the 100 fly in 1:02.09. Other winners for the Panthers were junior Anna Flores (W. Hartford, Conn.) in the 100 breaststroke (1:09.72), sophomore Catherine Suppan (Burlington, Vt.) in the 100 backstroke (1:02.04) and rookie Katie Remington (Madison, Wis.), who won the 50 free in 25.52.

The men were led by senior Robert Collier (Catonsville, Md.) with wins in the 100 butterfly (52.81), the 50 butterfly (24.01), and the 100 individual medley (55.11). Senior Tim Lux (Sandy Hook, Conn.) was a victor in both the 50 breaststroke (28.17) and 100 breaststroke (1:01.75) on the afternoon. In diving action, senior Michael Young (Leawood, Kan.) won the 1M event (242.12), while first-year diver Brooks Farrar (Medfield, Mass.) was a winner in the 3M competition (224.60).
• Women’s swim record: 1-1, men’s swim record: 2-0
• Up next: 1/6 vs. Colby – 4:00, 1/7 vs. Bates – 12:00

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HAS 3-0 WEEK
The Panther women’s basketball team Middlebury placed four players in double figures on its way to a 73-53 win over Plymouth State in Pepin Gym. With the game tied at six, Middlebury slowly increased its lead, holding a 21-11 advantage with 6:45 left in the first half. The Panthers made 12 of 15 first half free throws to take a 32-17 lead into the halftime break.

Plymouth State cut into the lead early in the half behind five points from Lauren Daniels to make it a 37-26 game with 16:20 remaining. The Panthers answered that with a 10-0 run over the next six minutes to take a 53-32 lead midway through the second half. The advantage remained at 20 or more for the remainder of the half as Middlebury picked up the win.

Junior Jennifer Kelleher (Belle Harbor, N.Y.) led the team with 16 points, while sophomore Ashley Barron (Brockton, Mass.) scored 15. Sophomore Emily Johnson (Lower Gwynedd, Pa.) added a dozen points with three three’s, while junior Lani Young (Concord, N.H.) scored 10 and grabbed 13 boards.

Middlebury closed the game on a 21-6 run as they picked up a 60-38 win over Green Mountain in Pepin Gym on Thursday. The Panthers came out red-hot, with a pair of three’s from Barron and one from Johnson to give the team a 12-2 early lead. A 7-0 run later in the half increased the lead to 25-8 with 9:06 remaining. Middlebury shot .438 from the floor in the first half, taking a 33-20 lead into the halftime break.

Green Mountain battled back in the second half, going on a 9-0 run at the 12:53 mark to cut the lead to 39-32 behind seven points from Christina Chamberlin. The Panther defense would clamp down from there, allowing the Eagles to score just six points in the game’s final 11:28.

Barron led the Panthers with 13 points, junior Katie Fisher (Oakland, Calif.) scored 10 with seven rebounds, while Young netted nine with a dozen boards.

Middlebury out rebounded Smith 48-28 on its way to a 54-43 win to wrap up the first semester. The Panthers took a 28-22 lead into halftime behind the shooting of Fisher who scored nine of her game high 11 points in the first 20 minutes. Middlebury got an early lead in the opening minutes but the Pioneers chipped away to bring them within one point (20-21) with three minutes remaining. Middlebury then went on a 7 – 2 run to close out the first half.

The Pioneers struggled offensively in the second half scoring just four points in the first 12 minutes of play, while Middlebury put up 16 more on the scoreboard. Smith went on a run of its own over the next six minutes outscoring the Panthers 16-6 to close the gap to eight at 50-42.

Fisher added five assists in the win, Barron scored nine, while Young had eight.
• Women’s basketball record: 7-2
• Up next: 1/3 vs. E. Conn. – 6:00, 1/4 @ Colby-Sawyer

MEN’S HOCKEY TOPS PLATTSBURGH
The Middlebury College men’s hockey team avenged an earlier season loss by picking up a 2-1 win at Plattsburgh on Friday night. The Panthers wrap up their semester with a 5-2 record.

Senior John Sales (Downington, Pa.) opened the scoring as he earned a power play goal at the 6:59 mark of the first period. The lead doubled at 14:11 of the second period as first-year player Charlie Townsend (Pennington, N.J.) scored his first career goal.

Plattsburgh battled back in the third, making it a 2-1 game with a goal from Kevin Galan at the 11:45 mark. The Middlebury defense, paced by 27 saves from sophomore goaltender Doug Reader (Needham, Mass.), would hold up for the game's final 8:15 as the Panthers earned a 2-1 win.
• Men’s hockey record: 5-2
• Up next: 12/31 – Hobart vs. Trinity – 1:00, Middlebury vs. St. Anselm – 4:00 (Holiday Classic)
1/1 – Consolation Game – 1:00, Championship Game – 4:00

MEN’S BASKETBALL GOES 2-0
The Panther men’s basketball team jumped out to a 13-2 lead and never looked back as they cruised to a 100-76 win over Southern Vermont. Junior Andrew Harris (Waterbury Center, Vt.) scored five points during the opening run in the game’s first 3:50. Southern Vermont cut the lead to four with 13:33 remaining in the half before the Panthers answered with a 14-2 run at the 7:30 mark. First-year player Tim Edwards (Greenwich, Conn.) scored the last six points of the half for Middlebury to give them a 53-33 lead at the intermission, shooting .667 from the floor.

Much of the same in the second half as the lead was cut to 17 before growing to as many as 30. Sophomore Aaron Smith (W. Hartford, Conn.) scored a game-high 21 points in the game on 7-9 shooting to go along with his seven rebounds. Harris poured in 20 with 10 boards, Edwards netted 11, while sophomore Ben Rudin (Scarsdale, N.Y.) had 10 points and eight assists.

Middlebury handed Hamilton its first loss of the season as the Panthers picked up an impressive 86-84 road win. Middlebury trailed 44-35 at the half, but a three-point basket by senior Wil Hyatt (Amesbury, Mass.) with 12:12 left in the second half gave the Panthers a 58-57 lead -- their first since the score was 5-4.

The lead traded hands several times until Smith put Middlebury in front for good at 74-72 on a lay-up with 4:13 remaining. Harris gave the Panthers a five-point cushion at 81-76 on a three-pointer with 2:01 left. A three by Simpson pulled the Continentals within one at 85-84 with six ticks remaining. Rudin made one free throw and missed the second with five seconds left. Nick Jones grabbed the rebound for Hamilton and got the ball to Ramunas Rozgys in the frontcourt, but Rudin knocked the ball away as time ran out.

The Continentals led by as many as 17 points three times in the first half. Hamilton shot 69 percent (20-29) from the floor in the first 20 minutes. Middlebury shot 32.1 percent (9-28) from the field, but made 14 of 17 free throws to stay within striking distance at the break.

Harris led the balanced attack with 15 points, while Rudin added 14 to go along with 10 assists and seven rebounds. Smith had 13 points and eight rebounds, senior Chris Dowd (Beverly, Mass.) scored 13, while junior Mike Walsh (Needham, Mass.) added 11 points and seven rebounds.
• Men’s basketball record: 5-3
• Up next: 1/3 @ U.N.E., 1/6 vs. Skidmore, 1/7 @ Colby-Sawyer

WOMEN’S HOCKEY BLANKS NEUMANN
The Middlebury College women's hockey team out shot Neumann 29-7 on its way to a 3-0 shutout over the Knights. The shutout is the fourth straight shutout for the Panthers, as they have not allowed a goal in their last 252 minutes of play.

Middlebury took a 1-0 lead with just seven seconds remaining in the first period on a power play goal. Senior Shannon Tarrant’s (Brookfield, Conn.) shot from the point was saved before senior Shannon Sylvester (Randolph, N.J.) jumped on the rebound and scored. Neumann had a pair of first period power plays, including a five-on-three for 51 seconds, but could not take advantage.

The lead doubled just 2:51 into the second period as the same line produced another power play tally. First-year player Ashley Bairos (Van Nuys, Calif.) slid a quick pass across the crease to a wide open Sylvester, who found the back of the net.

Middlebury gained some breathing room 5:50 into the third period when sophomore Randi Dumont (Greene, Maine) skated through the slot and roofed a backhander past Teresa White.

Junior Angie Todd (Kent, Wash.) made seven saves to earn the shutout, while White made 26 for Neumann.
• Women’s hockey record: 6-1
• Up next: 1/5 @ Colby, 1/6 @ Bowdoin

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