Williamstown, MA – As the clock wound down in the third period, the Williams College Ephs (6-14-1, 4-10-1) were level with Middlebury College Panthers (5-16-0, 4-11-0). After failing to clear the zone, the Ephs tried to hold down the fort; a shot from the point would sneak through the defense and past the goaltender as the clock struck 0:00, sinking the Ephs in a 3-2 loss.
The game opened with free-flowing back-and-forth action on both ends of the ice. Despite being outshot, the Ephs would dominate much of the possession in the first frame and began to pin the Panthers in their own zone as the period dragged on. It would be this offensive power that earned the Ephs a powerplay midway through the first. On the ensuing man advantage, snappy passing from
Mac Carso and Conner Berg would locate
Jonah Gold wide open on the wing. After a pause to collect the puck, he would fire it through the goaltender's pads to put the Ephs up one.
The second period saw the Ephs continue to gain momentum toward their second goal with countless scoring chances from just in front of the net. The Panthers' goalie was called upon throughout the frame, making 18 saves in the process and helping his team stay in the game. With just a minute remaining in the period, Middlebury would counter on a 3v3 break, find a loose puck in the slot, and bury the chance to tie the game at 1-1.
Hungry for a response, Williams would be relentless in the opening minutes. Just three minutes in,
Jack Sabre would catch a pass from
Sean Clarke on the break and fire the puck towards the Panthers' goal. The puck ricocheted off the goalie's pad and right onto the stick of
Faisal Al-Saif who hammered home the go-ahead goal.
Middlebury would be quick to provide an answer of their own, however, as they capitalized on blown coverage in the Ephs zone to knot the game at 2-2. With a minute remaining, a tired Ephs unit labored in their own zone and coughed up a costly turnover. 59 seconds later the puck would trickle over the goal line to send the Panthers home victorious.
After the game, Coach
Bill Kangas said, "That is a tough way for any team to lose. Sometimes that's the way the game goes, we know we had chances to put away the game, but in the end, we didn't. The quick turnaround will be good for us, we will look at the game and use it to fuel us for tomorrow." The Ephs complete the travel-partner weekend as they face Middlebury, again, on the road at 7 PM.
