Williamstown, MA - The skies were blue and spirits were high as #16 Williams College Ephs (7-7) in their last regular season game welcomed their biggest challenge of the season the undefeated, reigning NESCAC and national champions, the #1 Middlebury College Panthers (15-0). With playoff implications on the line,
Anj Raman made 18 saves and
Claudia Russell scored 3 goals to give the Ephs a fighting chance through the first three-quarters of this game. The Panthers would pull away in the fourth for a 12-8 victory, ending the Ephs' season although on a high note.
The Ephs were unfazed by the challenge in front of them and in under 15 seconds,
Claudia Russell grabbed the pass from
Juliet Kilborn who won the draw control and scored before the Panthers knew what hit them. Meeting great offense with better defense,
Anj Raman had a gorgeous save on the first Middlebury shot of the game, deflecting the shot with her stick and then catching it in the air.
Middlebury at the 10-minute mark returned with a goal of their own.
Cece Tauber led the charge for the Ephs' defense with an impressive stick-check and subsequent chase down of the ball for a caused turnover. However, the Williams offense became stagnant from this point as their possessions were rushed, which is a dangerous game to play with the physical Panther defense which caused constant turnovers. In the next Middlebury offensive possession, they converted on a free-position attempt for a 2-1 lead. Through some inside passing work, the Panthers scored another with a quick shot into the goal. With two minutes left in the quarter, Williams scored their second of the game with
Anna Miller scoring off an assist from
Sydney Puntus who threaded the needle for the clean shot. Middlebury followed this up with another free-position goal.
Cece Tauber continued her excellent play in this quarter, combining multiple spin moves and earning just enough space to score a goal. Ephs trailed 4-3 heading into the second quarter.
For the Ephs, draw controls and excessive fouling have been struggles this season, although the former was not the case today. The energy from the Ephs was unlike anything we've seen this season The crowd was loud and the players were charged up, exhibiting some of the most high-skill play they have demonstrated this season.
Anj Raman met the Middlebury shots on multiple occasions this quarter with 5 impressive saves. The defense followed suit as well with
Molly Hellman causing a turnover that allowed for the Ephs to charge downfield.
Sydney Puntus earned her second assist of the evening with another inside pass to
Sasha Landau who scored with a high shot to tie the game up at 4-4.
Crushing the Ephs' momentum, the next two Middlebury offensive possessions saw them convert on two more free-position shots to retake the lead at 6-4. Nevertheless, the Ephs were simply not backing down. Off another won draw control from
Juliet Kilborn, who played outstanding on the night,
Claudia Russell caught a pass at the top of the crease from
Franny Donohue and drove in and scored a shot into the right of the goal to shrink the Panther lead down to one. Frustration began to set in for Williams, with a low shot and Middlebury goal scored from quite some distance; in response, the Ephs' took a timeout. The Panthers came out of the timeout with momentum but were met in their tracks by two more
Anj Raman saves. The half closed out with Middlebury leading 7-5
Middlebury entered the second half determined to put this match away with their free-flowing and dynamic offense proving to become a tall task for the Ephs. Shortly into this half, the Panthers grew their lead to 3 with an inside move. This heater of a game continued with
Claudia Russell scoring a hat-trick with a drive from the top of the crease for the high shot and goal, 8-6. This Williams roster was executing at a level yet to truly be seen this season, with each and every Eph making their mark on the game. First-year
Reece Willison scored off an inside assist from
Meaghan Day, 8-7 Middlebury. It was an
Anj Raman masterclass who had 7 saves in this quarter, many of which came from point-blank Panther free-position shots. Special credit to first-year
Cailin Morrissey,
Molly Hellman, and
Zoe Getzin for their defensive, hustle plays that kept the Ephs and the crowd alive. The quarter closed out quietly with a close 8-7 game headed into the fourth quarter.
This wasn't the first time Middlebury has been pushed to the limit this season, but no team has delivered the final blow yet After 5 minutes of strong defense in the quarter, in what appeared to be the dagger, the Panthers scored two goals both through inside moves and a tough, slipped-in shot, 10-7 Middlebury. A few minutes later, Middlebury returned with one more off a physical drive leading to a score. This game was slipping away from the Ephs and they called their last timeout to think things over. In a shattering turn of events, Middlebury scored on another free-position shot to put this game nearly out of reach for Williams. With the impending end of the season on their minds,
Anna Miller scored on a cut, converting off an assist from
Franny Donohue. This would be the last goal of the game and the Eph season in 12-8 Panthers victory
Eph head coach
Alice Lee on her takeaways from this great showing, "We are really proud of this group, the effort tonight, and the legacy this senior class has imprinted on this team. We have had some challenges throughout the season and never once did the team back down or relent and they did a really good job of executing. The ball didn't bounce our way a few times and that is the nature of the game. We had so much heart and fight and there is a lot to look forward to as a team."
With this loss, along with Amherst's loss to Trinity, Williams did not qualify for the NESCAC quarterfinals, and their season has concluded. However, after tonight's performance, there is certainly a lot to look forward to.
