Middlebury dropped its first NESCAC game of the season as the Panthers fell 62-56 to 11th-ranked Tufts in Pepin Gym. The Jumbos (13-2, 1-1) bounced back after seeing its 12-game winning streak snapped at Williams yesterday, by shooting a red-hot .571 (8-14) from behind the three-point arc. Tufts also shot an impressive .462 from the floor, as Middlebury (8-5, 1-1) made just 1 of 9 three's on the afternoon.
Tufts led 14-11 with 8:38 left in the first half, before going on a 10-0 run to lead 24-11. Colleen Hart hit a pair of three's for the Jumbos to spark the run. The Jumbos maintained a double-digit lead for the rest of the half, as Hart hit her fifth trifecta with seven seconds left to make it a 35-22 game at the break.
Tufts took a game-high 16-point lead on a three from Kate Barnosky to open the second half, but Middlebury answered with an 8-0 run. The Panthers came within four in a pair of free throws from Brittany Perfetti, with the Jumbos coming back with a 9-0 spurt. Hart hit a two and a three during the run to give the Jumbos a 49-26 lead with 10:29 remaining.
Middlebury kept chipping away, making it a 53-50 game on a three from Perfetti with 4:57 on the clock. Tufts increased its lead, but the Panthers answered as Perfetti cut the margin to three once again with 2:53 remaining. The Jumbos scored on their next two possessions to extend the lead to 61-54, as Middlebury began to foul down the stretch. Tufts had a chance to put the game away sooner than they did, converting just 1 of 6 free throws in the final minute.
Stephany Surrette scored a career-high 18 points in the game for Middlebury, shooting 8 of 11 from the floor with eight boards. Perfetti added 15 points in the contest, while Kaitlyn Fallon netted eight points with five boards.
Hart scored a game-high 26 points for the Jumbos, shooting 10 of 15 from the floor and 6 of 9 from behind the arc. Julia Baily added 13 points and six boards, while Tiffany Kornegay netted 11.
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