AMHERST, Mass. — The Middlebury College football team retained a share of first place in NESCAC and remained undefeated on Saturday by topping previously undefeated Amherst, 35-31.
The Panthers improved to 4-0, good for a first-place tie with 4-0 Trinity, while the Mammoths dropped to 3-1. The Panthers will host Williams (one of four teams tied for third at 3-1) at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
On this past Saturday the Panthers led 35-17 in the fourth quarter — thanks in part because they returned two interceptions for touchdowns — and then held off a late charge by the Mammoths. 
Amherst took an early lead on a field goal, but Middlebury mounted an 81-yard drive that quarterback Jared Lebowitz capped by hitting Maxim Bochman with an eight-yard touchdown pass at 10:22 of the second quarter.
The Panthers pushed their lead to 21-3 on second-quarter interception returns by Kevin Hopsicker (32 yards) and Wesley Becton, whose 10-yard return came at 4:21 of the quarter.
The Mammoths then fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and Middlebury’s Jonathan Hobart recovered at the Amherst 15. Two plays later, Lebowitz found Frank Cosolito for a 27-yard scoring strike and a 28-3 lead.
The Mammoths answered with a Jack Hickey 34-yard touchdown run to make it 28-10 at the half.
Amherst also scored on its first possession on the second half, when Hasani Figueroa broke loose for a 74-yard run to make it 28-17.
Early in the fourth quarter Lebowitz hooked up with Conrado Banky for a 31-yard touchdown to make it 35-17, but Amherst battling back with touchdowns on its next two possessions — a four-yard pass to Harry Boeschens from Ollie Eberth, and then an 81-yard toss from Eberth to James O’Regan at 7:51.
Amherst had one more possession, but the Middlebury defense held, and the Panthers ran out the final 4:56 to secure the win.
Lebowitz completed 22 of 39 attempts for 205 yards and three touchdowns. Peter Scibilia ran 18 times for 67 yards, while Cosolito (six catches, 58) and Banky (five catches, 52 yards) paced the receivers. Hopsicker made eight tackles, Aaron Slodowitz made seven stops, Becton made six tackles, and John Jackson also picked off a pass.
For Amherst, Ollie Eberth completed seven of 12 for 148 yards for two touchdowns, tossing one interception, while Reece Foy completed seven of 12 passes for 54 yards and was picked off twice. Figueroa rushed 10 times for 109 yards, while Hickey picked up 80 yards on 12 rushes. O’Regan caught seven passes for 151 yards.