For Release: March 24, 2008
MEN’S SWIM TEAM PLACES 17th AT NCAA’S
The Middlebury College men’s swim team saw some impressive performances at the 2008 NCAA Championships. The Panthers finished 17th overall at the event, with Kenyon capturing the title.
Sophomore John Dillon (Wellesley, Mass.) was solid for Middlebury, earning All-American honors by placing second in the 200 fly with a time of 1:48.57 and with a fifth place finish in the 100 fly (49.98). Both of those performances set new NESCAC and school records. Dillon earned honorable mention All-American honors with a 10th place finish in the 100 back, setting a new school record with a time of 51.43.
Junior Kevin O’Rourke (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) earned honorable mention honors with a 10th place finish in the 200 free (1:40.06), while also setting a new school record with his leg in the 800 free relay (1:39.73).
The men’s 400 medley relay team comprised of Dillon, O’Rourke, junior Zach Woods (Monroe, N.Y.) and senior Peter Bell (Deerfield, Mass.), placed 11th overall with a time of 3:26.62.
• end of season
MEN’S LACROSSE WINS OVERTIME THRILLER AT BOWDOIN
Junior Mike Stone (Boston, Mass.) scored five goals, including the game-winner in double-overtime, to lead the Middlebury men's lacrosse team to a 12-11 comeback victory over Bowdoin on Saturday in Brunswick. The Panthers (4-0, 3-0 NESCAC) are ranked 11th in the latest USILA poll as Bowdoin drops their second straight contest to fall to 3-2 overall.
Bowdoin scored the first three goals of the game to grab an early advantage in the opening 9:25. The Panthers answered with a two-goal spurt to end the quarter and opened the second period with three tallies in a 4:36 span to take the lead. Bowdoin was able to trim the lead with a Rob Halliday goal one second before the half, giving Middlebury a 5-4 edge at the break.
Bowdoin dominated the third quarter, holding a 13-6 edge in shots and scored five straight times to take a four-goal lead. Rob Halliday and Cullen Winkler both scored twice in the run, as the Polar Bears held a 9-5 lead with 4:26 remaining in the frame. The teams traded late third-period tallies to make it 10-6 Bowdoin entering the fourth.
Just as Bowdoin had dominated the third period, Middlebury responded with a controlling fourth quarter. After the teams swapped goals to open the stanza, making it 11-7 Bowdoin with 13:30 to play, the Panthers would not allow another Polar Bear goal for the remainder of the afternoon. Meanwhile, Middlebury scored four times in the final 8:20, including a pair from Stone, to deadlock the contest with 2:41 remaining on a goal from senior Frank Granara (Norwell, Mass.). Junior Tom Petty (Newburyport, Conn.) had a chance to win it for Middlebury in regulation, but a shot from the point banged off the crossbar, sending the game to overtime.
Bowdoin had the best chance in the opening overtime session, as Rob Halliday's left-handed rocket bounced off the post. Neither team could find the game-winner in the opening extra session, forcing the game into a second overtime frame.
With under 10 seconds to play in the second OT, Middlebury junior Peter Britt (Summit, N.J.) controlled the ball on the right wing and found the stick of Stone, who was streaking down the middle towards the goal. Stone unleashed a low one-timer that bounced into the net with two seconds remaining, giving the Panthers the win.
Britt made 14 saves in goal for Middlebury while Alex Gluck stopped five shots in the opening half for Bowdoin. Gordon Convery made 11 saves in the second half and overtime for the Polar Bears.
Stone finished with a game-high five goals and one assist while Smith posted a goal and three helpers for Middlebury. Granara also found the back of the net twice. Rob Halliday led Bowdoin with four goals while Winkler had two and an assist. Max Key dominated the face-off circle for the Polar Bears, winning 22 of 26 tries.
Earlier in the week, Middlebury moved to 3-0 on the season as they picked up a 12-6 road win at Springfield. The Panthers wasted no time scoring the game’s first goal as Granara found the back of the cage just 13 seconds into the contest. A goal from sophomore Bart Witmer (Greenwich, Conn.) off a feed from Smith gave the Panthers a two-goal advantage with just under nine minutes left in the first period.
On the ensuing possession, Kyle Louer, from behind the cage, found Chris Sharpe in the middle of the field. Sharpe fired the ball past Britt to give the Pride it’s first goal of the game. Five minutes later, Chris Jez knotted the game at two off Jake Beebe’s first assist of the game. Stone put the visitors up 3-2 after the first period of the play after he scored his first goal of the afternoon with a minute and a half remaining.
Beebe connected with Joe Heney, who scored to tie the game at three 5:13 into the second period. The Pride took its first lead of the game at the 7:59 mark when Jez netted his second of the game, this time an unassisted mark. The Panthers tied the game at four when junior Dave Campbell’s (Boise, Idaho) shot deflected off a Springfield defender’s stick and found the back of the cage 38 seconds later. With 4:50 on the clock, Beebe found a wide-open Tyler Montgomery, who made no mistake as he slipped a shot into the cage from six yards out, giving SC a 5-4 advantage. Junior Matt Ferrer’s (Darien, Conn.) goal tied the game at five heading into halftime after he finished a feed from Stone with 1:23 on the clock.
Beebe found the back of the cage just over two minutes into the third quarter after he wrapped around the cage and found the back of the net while falling to the ground, breaking a five-all tie. That would be the last time Springfield would light up the scoreboard as the Panthers held Springfield scoreless for the final 27:36. In that span, Middlebury netted seven unanswered goals en route to the 12-6 victory.
Junior Skyler Hopkins (Easton, Md.) netted a pair of goals to go along with an assist in the run to lead the Panthers to the victory. Stone led the way with two goals and three assists for a game-high five points. Beebe dished out three assists to go along with a goal for Springfield.
Tom Albano made 15 saves in goal for Springfield while Britt made nine stops for Middlebury.
• Men’s lacrosse record: 4-0
• Up next: 3/25 @ W&L – 6:00, 3/29 vs. Colby – 12:00
WOMEN’S LACROSSE TOPS BOWDOIN
The Middlebury College women’s lacrosse team broke open a 7-6 game by scoring the final six goals of the contest on its way to a 13-6 win over Bowdoin on Kohn Field. The Panthers improve to 3-0 on the season and will travel to Washington & Lee and Gettysburg on their upcoming spring break trip. The Polar Bears move to 4-2 on the year and will visit Wheaton on Wednesday.
The teams exchanged the first eight goals of the game, leaving the contest in a 4-4 tie with 4:07 remaining in the first half. Middlebury took its first lead of the game at the 2:45 mark as first-year player Chase Delano (Greenwich, Conn.) scored with a low shot after cutting from behind the goal. The Panthers made it a 6-4 game when senior Katherine Entwisle (Lower Gwynedd, Pa.) scored at the horn, ending the first half.
Bowdoin’s Bobbi Dennison converted a free position shot just 31 seconds into the second half to make it a 6-5 game. Senior Amanda Smith (Greenwich, Conn.) answered for the Panthers after offensive pressure that saw five Middlebury shots miss the net. Lindsay McNamara made it a 7-6 game for the Polar Bears at 13:55, but unfortunately for Bowdoin, that would be their final tally of the game.
First-year player Sally Ryan (Mountain Lakes, N.J.) converted a free position, before assisting on a goal by Smith. Ryan than ran off a pair of goals before again earning another helper on a Smith tally. Entwisle scored the final goal of the game for the Panthers to make it a 13-6 contest.
Ryan ended the game with three goals and two assists, while Smith also tallied three. Delano netted three off the bench for the Panthers, while Entwisle scored a pair. Junior Blair Bowie (Washington, D.C.) made a dozen saves in goal to earn the win.
Dennison paced the Polar Bears with three goals, while Lindsay McNamara added a pair. Steph Collins-Finn made 10 saves on the afternoon.
• Women’s lacrosse record: 3-0
• Up next: 3/25 @ W&L, 3/27 @ Gettysburg, 3/29 @ Colby
SPRING BREAK
Several Middlebury teams are currently away on spring break trips. A complete wrap-up off all their games and contests will follow next week.
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