MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – The ninth-ranked Middlebury College women's lacrosse team held off a late Bowdoin rally to take a 16-12 victory on Saturday afternoon at Kohn Field. The Panthers (7-2, 4-1 NESCAC) led by as many as 10 goals in the second half before the Polar Bears (8-2, 4-2 NESCAC) scored seven of the game's final eight goals.
Middlebury's Chase Delano and Elizabeth Garry each scored four times. Sally Ryan and Ellen Halle each finished with four assists, while Stephanie Gill earned four draw controls for the Panthers. Carolyn Gorajek paced Bowdoin with four tallies, followed by Katie Stewart with three. McKenna Teague earned four draw controls, while Ingrid Oelschlager caused four turnovers as Bowdoin held Ryan, Middlebury's leading scorer, without a goal for the first time this season.
Middlebury came out flying, scoring six goals in the game's first 14:55 to take a sizable lead. Chase Delano found the back of the net three times during the opening run, assisting on the opening goal. Olivia King put Bowdoin on the board at 12:42, before Elizabeth Garry cut hard to the goal and converted a pass from Ellen Halle to answer. Emma Kramer followed to make it an 8-1 Middlebury lead with 5:25 remaining in the first half. The team's exchanged goals late in the half, with the Panthers taking a 9-2 lead into the intermission.
Katy Dissinger and Katie Stewart brought the Polar Bears within five early in the second half, before the Panthers scored six of the next seven to gain a 15-5 lead with 17:36 remaining. Delano scored her fourth of the game with a quick-stick goal from Halle to begin the run, followed by a lengthy run from Michaela Colbert to make it an 11-4 game. Leading 13-5, Elizabeth Garry scored twice, once with a quick shot on the inside and once on a free position to make it a 15-5 game.
Stewart helped mount the Bowdoin comeback with a pair of unassisted tallies. Carolyn Gorajek scored three of Bowdoin's final five goals in the last 6:45, leaving the Panthers with a 16-12 win. Lily Nguyen made 12 saves to earn the win, while Alyssa Palomba earned a pair of stops in 6:45. Tara Connolly made five saves in 40:30, as did Alexandra Brown in 19:30 of work. Middlebury has defeated Bowdoin 28 consecutive times dating back to 1987.
