The No. 25 Williams women's lacrosse team had few answers in a 14-4 loss on Wednesday evening against the No. 1 Middlebury Panthers. Middlebury displayed crisp offense and stifling defense to establish a significant lead by halftime. While the second half was much more even, the Ephs couldn't eat away at the large deficit. The win bumps the Panthers to 15-0 this season, and 10-0 in the NESCAC. With the loss, the Ephs fall to 7-8 and 3-7 in the NESCAC.
HIGHLIGHTS
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Middlebury scored the opening two goals of the game on nearly identical plays, with a cutting Hope Shue scoring twice off of assists from Kelcey Dion and Maggie Coughlin to put the Panthers ahead 2-0 by the 9:11 mark in the first quarter.
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After Anna Spehr made it 3-0 with a wraparound goal, Caroline Adams deposited a free-position shot into the net to put Middlebury further in front with 5:17 to play in the first quarter.
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Two more Middlebury goals ended the first quarter. First, a driving shot from Skylar Lach went off of goalie Caroline Pratt's leg, into the air, and across the line for a Middlebury goal with 4:13 to play. Then, Shue faked left and drove into the middle, firing a goal into the top right for her hat-trick to make it 6-0 with 2:05 remaining.
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The Ephs ramped up the defense in the opening few minutes of the second quarter, forcing some stops. Then, Claudia Russell forced a foul and converted her free-position attempt on a bouncing shot into the left side, putting Williams on the board with 12:52 to go in the first half.
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Several scoreless minutes later, a wild sequence in which multiple close-range Middlebury attempts were thwarted, but ended in a Panthers goal. Shue made a nice cut to free herself from multiple defenders and put the ball low and right. 7-1, Panthers, with 6:10 to play in the second quarter.
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Middlebury scored twice more to close out the half, with a Jamee Numan transition goal off of a Williams turnover and then a free-position finish from Shue giving the Panthers a 9-1 lead at the break.
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Franny Donohue gave the Ephs early third-quarter momentum, capitalizing on her free-position effort with a missile into the top right corner, making the score 9-2 with 14:24 to play in the third.
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The Panthers responded with two free-position goals. First, Shue finished into the bottom left with 12:33 to play, then Adams deposited hers into the same location with 6:30 left in the quarter.
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After a Williams timeout, the team found some success. Claudia Russell drove inside from distance, finding an opening and finishing low for her second goal of the game, making it 11-3 with 4:30 to go.
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Middlebury put home a late goal in the third after forcing a turnover and getting out in transition. On the run, Numan found Coughlin, who split two defenders and scored a driving goal with 18 seconds to play in the quarter.
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The Panthers continued to surge to start the fourth quarter. With 14:08 to go, Dion hit Spehr in the middle, and she whipped a shot into the top of the net to make it 13-3. A few minutes later, Sophia Lee netted a driving shot into the left corner with 11:52 left in the game.
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Next, Ainsley Abel scored for Williams on a strong individual play. She cleared the ball, then got fouled. When play resumed, she passed the ball to Anna Miller, then cut towards the right and got the pass back from Miller, driving towards the goal and firing a contested shot into the top right corner. Abel's goal made it 14-4 with 7:05 to go in the game, and the score would stand over the last few minutes.
NOTES
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Claudia Russell led the Ephs in points and goals in the final regular season game of her career.
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Grace Collier led all players with five ground balls.
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Caroline Pratt played a strong game, finishing with 11 saves.
The Ephs' future is currently uncertain. With the loss, the Ephs will either be the eighth and final team in the NESCAC tournament, or they will be left on the outside looking in. The outcome of the Bowdoin-Tufts game, which began at 7 p.m. and is currently at halftime, will determine whether or not Williams qualifies for the NESCAC tournament. If Bowdoin wins, the Polar Bears will tie the Ephs in the standings, and by tiebreaker will knock Williams out. If Tufts wins, the Ephs will finish ahead of Bowdoin in the standings, and make the tournament. In the case of a Tufts victory, Williams will take on Middlebury in the NESCAC quarterfinals. The quarterfinals are scheduled to occur on Saturday.
