The Middlebury women's basketball team earned a 64-59 overtime road win during non-conference action on Saturday afternoon against the AMCATS of Anna Maria. The game saw neither team lead by more than seven points throughout all 65 minutes at the Fuller Activities Center. With the win, the Panthers improve to 7-3 for the season, while the loss drops the AMCATS to 4-8 overall.

Middlebury was paced by the rookie duo of Sarah Kaufman and Rachel Collins, who scored 15 points apiece. Elizabeth Knox chipped in with 12 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Rachel Crews had eight rebounds and five assists, while Sabrina Weeks pulled down seven boards.

Anna Maria was paced by Christina Gauvin, who netted a team-high 16 points on a 6-13 effort from the floor with a trio of three-pointers. Trafficia Warburton scored 14 points with nine rebounds and seven steals, while Kristina Russo added nine points off the bench.

The first half saw two lead changes and seven ties over the 20 minutes. The Panthers took their largest lead of the game at 17-10 with 8:01 left following a layup by Knox, but the AMCATS responded with a 9-2 run to tie the score at 19-19 following a Gauvin three-point basket. The AMCATS quickly took a five-point advantage with 2:56 to play on a jumper by Russo and another three by Gauvin, but the Panthers used the remaining time to score seven unanswered points for a 28-26 halftime lead.

The AMCATS outscored the Panthers 25-23 in the second half, which saw an additional four scoring ties and four lead changes. Neither team led by more than five points in the second half. With five minutes still to play, the AMCATS held a three-point lead at 48-45. From there, both teams entered a three-minute scoring draught, which was broken up with a layup by Knox to cut the lead to one.

Anna Maria again opened a three-point margin with 1:49 to play in regulation, but Middlebury netted back-to-back layups and took a one-point edge at 51-50 with 13 seconds remaining. An untimely foul by the Panthers sent Anna Maria's Lindsay Bond to the line, where she hit her second free-throw to send the game to overtime.

The story changed in overtime, as the Panthers scored the first basket of the extra time and never trailed, outscoring the AMCATS 13-8 en route to the 64-59 win.

The AMCATS forced the Panthers into 26 turnovers for the afternoon, resulting in 17 AMCAT steals.

Middlebury outscored Anna Maria by a 26-14 count in the paint and held a 28-10 lead in bench points, but the hosts held advantages in the remaining scoring categories: points off turnovers (27-13), second-chance points (11-9) and fast-break points (10-6).

Anna Maria will open Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play at home on Tuesday, January 6 at 7:00 p.m. against Norwich. The Panthers will travel to Plattsburgh State for a 7:30 p.m. game on Tuesday.