The Middlebury football team improved to 2-2 on the season with a dramatic 23-20 overtime victory at Williams on Saturday afternoon. Matt Milano found Brendan Rankowitz for a 14-yard scoring strike on the team's first possession in overtime to give the Panthers the victory. The win is the team's third straight over the Ephs. Middlebury returns to action next Saturday when it hosts Bates, while Williams (1-3) visits Tufts.

A late scoring drive forced the game into extra time, as Middlebury drove 60 yards in 1:16 to tie the game at 17-17 with 59 seconds remaining. The drive nearly ended early, but Milano hit Grant Luna on a 4th-and-10 play to give the team a first down at the Williams' 47. An 11-yard connection with Matthew Minno and an eight-yard rush from Milano brought the ball to the Ephs' 28-yard line. Following a 15-yard pass interference penalty, Rankowitz caught an 11-yard pass to bring the ball to the two. Milano then hit Drew Jacobs in the flat for a two-yard touchdown pass, knotting the contest and eventually forcing the game into overtime.

On the Eph's opening drive, Tim Patricia picked off a pass, but the Panthers were unable to take advantage of the short field and turned the ball over on downs.

Williams took a 3-0 lead with 6:08 remaining in the first half on a 40-yard field goal from Joseph Mallock.

The Panthers drove 74 yards on 12-plays on their ensuing drive, but Eric Bertino was picked off by Tom Cabarle in the end zone.

Down 3-0, Middlebury took its first lead with 10:30 remaining in the third quarter when Patricia forced a fumble that was recovered in the end zone by Will Bain for the touchdown.

Williams answered late in the quarter with a 10-play, 85-yard drive that ended in a 30-yard rushing touchdown from Alex Scyocurka.

Michael Dola tied the game at 10-10 for Middlebury with 10:40 remaining in the fourth, when he split the uprights from 19 yards out.

The Ephs went back on top with a quick drive that ended with a three-yard touchdown pass from Austin Lommen to Lewis Hayes. A 77-yard connection from the duo highlighted the drive that put the Ephs on top, 17-10.

Middlebury turned the ball over on downs and then held on defense, getting the ball back at its own 40 with 2:15 remaining and set up the game-tying drive.

Middlebury opted to play defense first in overtime, as Mallock connected from 22 yards out on Williams' first possession in the extra period for a 20-17 edge.

Milano finished 19-37 for 155 yards with a pair of touchdowns, while Bertino went 4-5 for 41 yards with an interception in first-half action. Jacobs finished with 149 yards of total offense, 81 on the ground (22 rushes) and 68 through the air (8 receptions) with a touchdown. Jonathan Hurvitz led the Middlebury rushers with 88 yards on 18 carries, Luna caught six passes for 47 yards, while Rankowitz caught four balls for 42 yards and a touchdown.

Addison Pierce led the Panther defense with 18 tackles, Dan Pierce added 15, while Matthew Benedict made 11 tackles. The Middlebury defense finished the game with nine tackles for lost yardage. Patricia finished with eight tackles, including a tackle for a loss, a forced fumble and an interception for Middlebury to earn NESCAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. Dola averaged 45.6 yards per punt with three inside the 20.

Austin Lommen went 19-29 for 234 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the afternoon. Scyocurke led all rushers with 98 yards on 27 carries with a touchdown. Hayes caught four passes for 116 yards and a touchdown, while James O'Grady made 11 tackles to lead the Williams' defensive unit.