Middlebury rebounded from a loss for the fifth time this season as the Panthers (9-5) earned a 65-53 victory over Potsdam (1-10) in Pepin Gym. Clutch free throw shooting down the stretch paced Middlebury, as its defense forced 21 turnovers on the night. The Panthers return to action on Friday at Wesleyan, while Potsdam hosts Cortland on the same night.

Middlebury held a 16-6 lead after 10 minutes of play on a lay-up from Alexis Coolidge. The Panther defense held Potsdam to 2-12 from the floor, including seven turnovers in that span. Elizabeth Knox hit a two and a three early in the game to spark the run.

The lead grew to as many as 18 when Sabrina Weeks connected after a feed from Rachel Collins to make it a 27-9 game with 4:07 remaining. Middlebury entered the halftime break with a 29-13 lead, as Potsdam was held to 5-25 (.200) shooting from the floor with a dozen turnovers.

Middlebury's lead grew to a game-high 20 points early in the second half on a put-back by Rachel Crews. The advantage stood at 19 points when Potsdam went on an 8-0 run at the 11:04 mark of the second half. The spurt brought the Bears within 11 at 44-33 with 8:45 remaining.

Potsdam came within 10 before Crews stuck a three from the top of the key to put her team on top 53-40 with 6:03 on the clock. The Bears later received threes from Colleen McNamara and Bailey Weigel to cut the margin to 55-48 with 2:13 remaining. Potsdam was forced to foul the Panthers down the stretch, as Middlebury knocked down 10-10 from the line in the final 1:37 to seal the win.

Six of those 10 made free throws came from Sarah Kaufman, who paced the team with 17 points, while adding seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals. Crews scored 16 on 6-12 shooting, Knox finished with nine, while Coolidge added eight.

Weigel led Potsdam with 17 points, while adding seven rebounds. Katie Lavoie netted 14 points on the night with a game-high 11 rebounds, while Veronica Sapp netted nine.