The Middlebury women’s lacrosse team has been seemingly invincible since the inception of NESCAC play in 1999, going 61-0 against NESCAC squads, a streak that the Cardinals nearly ended on Saturday.
Over their history, the Panthers have won the national championship five times, qualified for the NCAA Tournament 13 times, and have been perennial NESCAC champions. Ranked third in the nation heading into Saturday’s game against the Cards, the Panthers were brimming with confidence.
The Cards had a little swagger of their own. Ranked 13th in the nation and challenging for NESCAC supremacy, the Cards hadn’t lost a home game this year. They were ranked higher this late in the season than ever before. They had a shot at setting the team record for victories and securing a home playoff game as a top-four seed with depth across the board, outstanding defensive play, and standout senior leadership. Playing David to Middlebury’s Goliath, the Cards felt that they had as good a chance as any. Still, Middlebury eventually proved too tall a task, and the Panthers left Middletown with a 10-9 victory.
Middlebury struck first in front of a raucous crowd of over 150 people, but Wesleyan answered with two quick goals from Erin McCarthy ’10 and Sarah Orkin ’09 to take the lead. The lead continued to change hands throughout the first as the Cards played up to the competition, never giving Middlebury an easy opportunity. With the cheers of their fans echoing across the field, the Cards fought tooth and nail for every loose ball, for each inch of ground, and for every goal. When the first half ended with Middlebury up by only one, the crowd and the team all knew that beating Middlebury could happen.
When Laurel Sticklor ’09 scored 15 seconds into the second half to tie the game, the crowd went nuts, and the energy and excitement were palpable. But Middlebury was not about to let the Cards make NESCAC history, answering with two quick goals inside of 13 seconds and adding one a minute later with excellent passing to take a 9-6 lead.
Another team might have crumbled under the disappointment of seeing a tie game evaporate so quickly into a three-goal deficit, but not Wesleyan. With 13 minutes to go, Elena Parasco ’10 buried a ball from Sticklor into the net to cut the lead to two. With 8:40 left, Orkin scored her third of the game, bringing the Cards to within one. The crowd dared to hope, and Jade Scott ’09 rewarded the fans by scoring her first goal of the season with five minutes left to tie the game.
Disaster then struck in the form of a fine assist from Amanda Smith of Middlebury to Mimi Schatz, who poked the ball past Wesleyan goalkeeper Rachel Stemerman ’09. After another four minutes of wild and desperate play, the game ended with the final score: Middlebury 10, Wesleyan 9.
The Cards’ next game is Saturday at Bates, a match up that will define their seeding for the NESCAC tournament. The Cards could end up as the number three seed or the number seven seed, due to a topsy-turvy year of unmatched parity in the NESCAC. A seeding in the top four would guarantee Wesleyan’s first ever home playoff game.
Leave a Reply