The 15th-ranked Panther women's squash team, seeded #3 in the NESCAC Tournament hosted by Hamilton, advanced into the semifinal round on Saturday before falling to second-seeded and 13th-ranked Williams by a score of 6-3. Middlebury earned a bye through the first round, and posted a narrow 5-4 victory over sixth-seeded and 19th-ranked Bates in the quarterfinal round. The Panthers (9-6) return to play on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in the third-place match against fourth-seeded Amherst, ranked 16th in the latest national poll.

In the quarterfinal, Middlebury jumped out to a 2-0 lead with three-game wins from Mira Chugh at #8 over Hannah Conner (11-1, 11-0, 11-5) and Natasha Lowitt in the ninth spot against Katie Bull (11-3, 11-3, 11-1).

A victory in the fourth slot by Bates cut the Panther advantage in half. Middlebury rattled off victories in the next three matches to finish. Lucy Bostwick edged Vicky Arjoon at #2 (12-10, 11-7, 11-6), while Virginia Schaus outlasted Katie Manternach in the sixth position (11-9, 8-11, 7-11, 11-4, 11-6). Emily Beinkampen clinched the match with an 11-7, 11, 5-, 13-11 triumph at #7 over Molly Brooks.

The Bobcats were victorious at #3, #1 and #5 for the final 5-4 decision.

Against the Ephs in the semifinal, Williams moved out to a 3-0 advantage with victories at #4, #8 and #2. Schaus made the score 3-1 with a 6-11, 11-4, 11-8, 13-11 win over Sarah Willwerth in the sixth slot. The Ephs clinched the match with wins at #9, #3 and #7, respectively.

Beinkampen improved to 2-0 on the day with a victory at #7 over LeBlanc in five games (11-8, 11-9, 8-11, 9-11, 11-5), while Natalie Madden concluded the scoring with a four-game win against Ananya Mahalingam-Dhingra (11-9, 12-10, 5-11, 11-9).