Football shuts down Bates
 
MIDDLEBURY — On Saturday, the Middlebury College football team out-gained visiting Bates, 532-149, as the Panthers (2-3) picked up a 22-9 win over the Bobcats (1-4) on homecoming weekend.
Middlebury quarterback Donald McKillop set the New England Division III record for most passing yards in a career with (7,847), surpassing Matt Jozokos of Plymouth State who threw for 7,814 yards in the late 1980s. In 27 career games, the senior owns New England records for attempts, completions and passing yards.
Middlebury scored on its first possession, driving 62 yards on 13 plays before Anthony Kuchan booted a 22-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead. The Panthers took a 10-0 lead late in the first quarter, when McKillop found Matt Rayner from four yards out for the touchdown.
Kuchan missed a 29-yarder in the second quarter before Bates goal on the board after McKillop tossed an interception. Brett McAllister picked off the pass at the Middlebury 41, setting up a 27-yard field goal from Gavin Segall-Abrams with 3:15 left in the half.
McKillop was picked off again late in the half, when Tyler Kuehl intercepted a ball at the line of scrimmage and returned it 15 yards for the score. A missed extra-point left the Panthers with a 10-9 lead.
A 23-yard kick-off return by Gary Cooper gave Middlebury the ball on their own 42 with 46 seconds left in the half. The Panthers marched down the field, aided by a 35-yard connection from McKillop to Alex Englert. Then, from four yards out, McKillop tossed a beautiful fade pass to Zach Driscoll in the corner of the end zone. The conversion failed, and the Panthers took a 16-9 lead into intermission.
On their first possession of the second half, the Panthers drove 65 yards on 11 plays. McKillop hit Plumley for 34 yards and David Reed for 22 to set up a Kuchan 22-yard field goal.
The final points of the game were scored on an 86-yard drive that ate up 6:48 that spanned the third and fourth quarters. A 39-yard reception from Nick Resor helped set up the third field goal of the game from Kuchan, this one from 23 yards out to make it 22-9.
McKillop finished 38 of 60 for 365 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He missed two series with an injury, and Jack Kramer came in to go 3-6 for 21 yards. Plumley rushed 27 times for 116 yards and caught four passes for 55. 
Reed caught 10 passes for 86 yards to lead Middlebury’s receiving corps, which had seven players make four catches or more. Rayner caught seven balls for 60 yards, Englert was 5-for-71 and Nick Resor was 5-for-62.
Andrew Poulin made a team-high seven tackles for Middlebury, and Bates rushed for only 42 yards a week after gaining 215 against Wesleyan. Middlebury held the ball for nearly 40 minutes in the game, holding Bates to six first downs and one of 13 on third down conversions.
The Panthers will play at Trinity this weekend.
 
 
Volleyball wins tournament in 4-0 week
 
SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. — The Middlebury College team captured this past weekend’s 2010 Volleyball Hall of Fame Women’s Invitational with a 3-0 record. Matches were played at Mount Holyoke and Smith colleges.
In the championship match, top-seeded Middlebury breezed to a 3-0 (25-16, 25-14, 25-21) triumph over sixth-seeded Bowdoin. With tournament most valuable player Lauren Barrett — also named the NESCAC player of the week — leading the way, the Panthers won all three of their matches 3-0. Middlebury topped Tufts (25-13, 25-17, 25-14) in the semifinals and M.I.T. (25-21, 25-23, 25-19) in the quarters.
In the opener, Jane Handel and Megan Jarchow each collected 10 kills in the win over M.I.T. Julia Gibbs led the squad with 12 kills in the victory over Tufts, while Caitlin Barrett had 20 digs, Lauren Barrett had 32 assists, and Handel earned four service aces. In the final, Jarchow pounded out a dozen kills, followed by Handel with nine and Gibbs with seven. Caitlin Barrett had 16 digs, Lauren Barrett dished out 33 assists, and Gibbs had four service aces.
Earlier in the week, Middlebury earned a 3-1 (25-13, 24-26, 25-22, 25-19) win over visiting Plymouth State. Jarchow led the team with 15 kills, followed by Gibbs with 14 and Handel with 10. Caitlin Barrett earned a team-high 20 digs, Jarchow added 13, while Handel had 11. Gibbs drilled four service aces, Elissa Goeke and Madeline Firestone each had three blocks, while Lauren Barrett earned 40 assists.
 
Field hockey clinches home field
 
MIDDLEBURY — The Middlebury College field hockey team won twice last week, including a home win on Saturday that clinched the 10-3 Panthers a home quarterfinal on Sunday in the NESCAC playoffs. First, they must play at Williams on Friday. The Panthers began last week ranked No. 13 in NCAA Division III.
On Saturday Middlebury picked up its eight consecutive win, 4-1 win over visiting Bates (4-9). Bates took just two shots in the game, but scored on its first 3:18 into the contest on a penalty corner. 
Lauren Greer tied the game for Middlebury at 9:14, scoring with a reverse stick on a rebound. Greer struck again in the second half, scoring with a high shot from the top of the circle. Charlotte Gardiner made it 3-0 at the 56:52 mark, finishing off a flurry in front of the goal after a pair of saves by Bates goalie Katie McEnroe (19 stops).
Greer notched the hat-trick just eight seconds later, taking a feed from Gardiner and scoring her team-leading 14th of the season. Panther goalie Becca Shaw made one save to earn the win.
On Wednesday the Panthers picked up a 2-0 win over a visiting 5-8 St. Lawrence team that featured two former local athletes at midfield: Mount Abraham Union High School’s Michelle Laframboise and Middlebury Union’s Kate Higgins.
Middlebury maintained the ball in the St. Lawrence end for much of the half, and the Panthers scored first at 22:00. Gardiner sent the ball from the right wing through the middle, where Hannah Clarke scored her second goal in as many games from the far side with a redirect. The Panthers made it a 2-0 at 27:32, when Greer broke in alone and scored with a shot to the right corner. 
Shaw ended the game with a pair of saves to earn the shutout, while Nicole Matos made 11 stops for the Saints.
 
Women’s soccer splits two games
 
MIDDLEBURY — The Middlebury College women’s soccer team split two games in the latter half of last week, bouncing back from a non-league road loss to pick up a home NESCAC win on Saturday. The 7-3-3 Panthers wrap up their regular season next Friday at Williams, with home field for a NESCAC tournament quarterfinal game on Sunday possibly at stake.
On Saturday, the Panthers picked up a 2-0 win over visiting Bates (6-6-1) to remain unbeaten in their last six NESCAC games.
Middlebury out shot Bates, 14-2, in the first half, but could not find the back of the net. In the second half, Nora Tomlinson-Weintraub saw her shot skim the crossbar. Bates goalie Annie Burns kept it scoreless at 67:30 by tipping a Scarlett Kirk attempt over the net.
But Middlebury broke through seconds later, when Drew Smith scored her first of the season at 67:54. After a defender blocked an initial shot by Maddy Boston, Smith banged home the rebound.           
The Panthers extended their lead late in the game. Katie Ruymann drilled a restart from 25 yards out that hit the crossbar, and Rachel Madding gathered the carom and finished.
Lauryn Torch made three saves to earn her fourth shutout of the season, while Burns had four saves for Bates.
Middlebury fell at Plattsburgh 1-0 on Wednesday, a day after returning from a road game in Connecticut. The Cardinals improved to 12-2-1. Kayla Rabideau netted the game-winner at 64:50 off a ball that was knocked around the box following a corner kick. 
 Middlebury held a 10-8 advantage in shots and a 3-2 edge in corner kicks. Alina Greiser recorded her ninth shutout of the season with four stops for Plattsburgh in the victory. Torch (1 save) and Jocelyn Remmert (2 saves) split time in the Middlebury net.