The Middlebury men's lacrosse team picked up its third-straight NESCAC victory, as the Panthers never trailed in a 14-9 win over visiting Bates on Saturday. Middlebury (3-3, 3-1) heads to Springfield on Tuesday for a 5:00 p.m. faceoff with the Pride, while the Bobcats (0-7, 0-4) are home on April 2 against Williams.

The Panthers had a strong start to the game, netting the initial four tallies of the contest. Tom Conley opened the scoring, charging the cage from the left side with just 30 seconds expired. William Ryan doubled the lead 1:20 later off a nice feed from Billy Curtis. Russell Thorndike and Curtis picked up markers 40 seconds apart to push the cushion to 4-0. Bates got onto the scoreboard with 7:42 on the clock, as Jackson Sell cashed in on a pass to the top of the crease from Jack Lousararian. The teams alternated the next four tallies with the Panthers holding a 6-3 edge at the end of the quarter.

The hosts got off to a fast start in the second frame with William Monroe winning the faceoff and scoring his first collegiate goal. The Bobcats kept the Middlebury offense quiet the rest of the half while trimming two goals off the margin. Sell and Tyler Chang found the back of the net 49 seconds apart. Chang's tally came with 7:09 on the clock and the 7-5 score held until the intermission.

The Panthers extended the lead to five goals (10-5) with three-straight tallies to open the third stanza. Finn McCarthy scored off a turnover, while Thorndike's low shot as he was falling to the ground rolled in with 9:25 on the clock. McCarthy capped the run with a rising shot from the wing for a man-up goal. Bates crept back to within three goals, scoring twice in 10 seconds. Jake Johnson netted the first score, while Mike Burden won the ensuing faceoff before scoring to close the margin to 10-7.

The Bobcats added a man-up goal 28 seconds into the final frame from Malcolm Kingbeil, but Middlebury protected the lead by scoring three of the contest's final four markers to produce the 14-9 final.

McCarthy topped all players with four goals and one assist, while Thorndike chipped in with two scores and one helper. In all, 10 different Panthers scored at least one goal. William Monroe won 10-18 faceoffs and scooped up a game-high eight ground balls. Finn O'Connor earned the win in goal with a career-high 19 saves.

Sell had the hat trick for the Bobcats with three tallies, while Kingbeil had a pair of scores. Burden went 8-12 on faceoffs, while goalie Spencer Wood finished with 16 saves and tied for the team lead with four ground balls.

Middlebury held a 51-46 advantage in shots and a 39-34 edge in ground balls.