For the second-straight spring, Amherst and Middlebury battled in the NESCAC Tournament semifinals, as the Lord Jeffs picked up a thrilling 5-3 victory against third-seeded Middlebury on Saturday at Bowdoin. With the win, Amherst, the nation's second-ranked team, improves to 17-3 overall, and will play Williams in the title match, while the 10th-ranked Panthers fall to 10-7.

In doubles action, the Amherst duo of Zoe Pangalos and Jen Newman were the first to finish with an 8-3 win over Middlebury's Lily Bondy and Alexandra Fields at #2. The Lord Jeffs grabbed a 2-0 lead when the #1 tandem of Jordan Brewer and Gabby Devlin posted an 8-4 victory against Ria Gerger and Kaysee Orozco. At #3, the Panthers cut the lead in half headed to singles with a 9-7 victory by Lauren Amos and Margot Marchese over Amherst's Safi Ali and Sarah Monteagudo.

During singles action, Bondy tied the match at 2-2 with a 6-0, 6-0 victory at #4 over Sue Ghosh. Wins from Brewer at #1 (6-4, 6-0) over Gerger and Devlin (6-1, 6-4) over Fields gave Amherst a 4-2 lead. In the third flight, Orozco pulled the Panthers to within one at 4-3 with a 7-5, 6-4 win over Newman. In the sixth spot, Monteagudo claimed the match for Amherst as she rallied from a set down for a 0-6, 6-3, 6-4 triumph over Dorrie Paradies.

Middlebury is expected to receive an at-large bid to the 2014 NCAA Tournament when the pairings are announced on Monday, May 5 at 7:00 p.m.