Middlebury sports take three tough losses over weekend – The Middlebury Campus

Middlebury athletics had an unfortunate weekend as a trio of teams all took losses in crucial end of season matchups. The football team (6–3) lost to Tufts 17–7, the field hockey team (15–2) lost in the NESCAC semifinals to Bates 2–1 and the men’s soccer team (14–1–3) suffered their first loss of the season in the NESCAC finals after Connecticut College beat them 3–1.

The football team’s loss ended what was a very strong season on a sour note. Since the NESCAC has no playoffs for football, the contest against Tufts marked the team’s last game of the season. Against the Jumbos, the Panther’s defense played strongly and Connor McClellan ’28 capped off a strong rookie season with a 30 yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, giving him seven rushing touchdowns for the season. However, Middlebury’s passing attack was limited as signal caller Brian Moran ’26 threw two interceptions, and Tufts ultimately prevailed. 

Overall, Moran and the Panthers had a very strong season. As a whole, the Panthers were fourth in the NESCAC in total touchdowns and had the fourth fewest total touchdowns allowed. In Moran’s first full season at quarterback, he threw for 16 touchdowns and only six interceptions. His primary targets, Patrick Jamin ’25 and Ethan Vashel ’25 both ranked in the top-10 in the NESCAC for receiving yards per game. Meanwhile, McClellan and Carter Stockwell ’24.5 gave Middlebury a formidable rushing attack. 

“As a whole, I think it was a very successful season,” offensive lineman Patrick O’Neill ’24.5 said. “It’s obviously disappointing to not win a NESCAC championship, but it was still a great season with a great group of guys.”

One of the team’s defining moments from this past season was their 24–21 victory against NESCAC runner-up Trinity. The Panthers scored with less than a minute left in the fourth quarter to beat their co-NESCAC champion from last season. 

Next year, the team is in a good position to build on their success from this season. With Moran having a year of experience under his belt and McClellan leading the running game, the Panthers have a shot at next year’s championship.

“I think they have a really good chance to be great again next year,” O’Neill said. “It’s a new team every year, so they gotta keep working, but I’m excited to watch them.”

Just like the football team, the field hockey team will not repeat this season as NESCAC champions. The field hockey team will not be NESCAC champions for the first time since 2016, and the team’s loss against Tufts gave them multiple losses in a season for the first time since 2017. 

Middlebury’s loss against Bates came in a game where the Panthers dominated possession and outshot Bates by a staggering amount. By the end of the game, Middlebury had 16 shots on goal while the Bobcats only had four shots on goal. The Bates goalie, Ava Donahue, had a tremendous game, recording nine saves.

 Amy Griffin ’24.5 opened the scoring for the Panthers with her ninth goal of the season, but Bates found the equalizer in the second period after a strike from Brooke Moloney-Kolen, and in the fourth quarter Bates took the lead for good courtesy of a penalty stroke goal from Anna Cote. 

Despite the loss in the NESCAC tournament and a season that is not quite as dominant as they are used to, the field hockey team is still in a good position to win their seventh consecutive national championship this season. The team leads the NESCAC in overall goals scored with 89. The second place team, Tufts, only has 51 goals despite playing one more game. On defense, the Panthers are also strong, recording an opponent’s goal average of 0.88, the third lowest in the NESCAC. 

Individually, a number of field hockey players have had great seasons. Four Middlebury players are in the top-10 in the NESCAC for goals. Caroline Segal ’24.5 leads the NESCAC with 18, Georgianne Defeo ’26 is right behind her with 15, Hanna Medwar ’25 is in seventh place with 10 and Griffin is in eighth place with nine. Griffin is also second in the NESCAC with 12 assists.   

Even with two losses this year, the Panthers are still the top-ranked team in the country, and they secured an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The team has a bye for the first round of the tournament, but they will host the second and third rounds of the tournament as they are set to play the winner of Bryn Mawr and SUNY Geneseo at 11:00 am on Saturday at Peter Kohn Field. 

The men’s soccer team also saw a defeat in their NESCAC tournament. After an undefeated season and a 1–0 win against Bowdoin in the NESCAC semifinals, Connecticut College triumphed over the Panthers in the NESCAC finals. 

In the finals matchup, the Camels took a quick 1–0 lead in the 21st minute, but the Panthers stormed back as defender Ari Klayman ’27 scored the equalizer just five minutes later. Conn College though was in excellent form and scored two more goals before full time to secure their NESCAC championship victory.

The finals loss is a missed opportunity for a squad with immense talent. The team leads the NESCAC in total goals with 44. Individually, Colin Dugan ’27, Keagan Harder ’28 and Gavin Randolph ’26  lead the offense for the Panthers with six goals scored each. Randolph also has three assists, putting him in sixth place in the NESCAC in points with 15. In goal for the Panthers, Joey Waterman ’26 has the fourth lowest goals against average in the NESCAC at .634, and he leads the NESCAC in shutouts with 10.  

The men’s soccer season is not over yet, though. The team earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, and they will be hosting the first two rounds of the tournament this weekend. They are set to play their first elimination game against Hunter College this Saturday at 11 a.m.