The Middlebury volleyball team battled #15 Wesleyan through five tight sets, but the Panthers came up short, being edged 15-11 in the final frame.
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• The Cardinals got out to a quick 3-0 edge in the opening stanza, but Middlebury responded with seven consecutive points to take a 7-3 lead. The run was highlighted by powerful serving from Katie Kraczkowsky, who tallied a trio of service aces.
• Wesleyan battled back, taking advantage of an error to knot the contest at 15 points apiece.
• Trailing 19-18 later on, the Cardinals rattled off six of the next eight points to secure the 25-20 triumph.
• Tied at 2-2 in the second set, Middlebury went on a 10-0 run capped on a service ace from Britt Lange. Molly Harrison was strong through the span, recording four kills to increase the advantage to 12-2.
• The Panthers maintained roughly a 10-point lead for several rallies, but Wesleyan mounted a late comeback attempt. Trailing 21-10, the Cardinals had an 8-2 burst, but it was not enough. 
• Back-to-back kills by Lange and Harrison gave Middlebury the 25-18 second set win.
• The third stanza was a back-and-forth affair with neither team able to gain a sizable advantage. Deadlocked at 21 points apiece, the Panthers tallied four of the next five points, capped by a kill from Ava Tuccio for the 25-22 victory.
• Down by two (19-17) in the fourth frame, Wesleyan had a 5-0 burst sparked by a kill from Kate Long to take a 22-19 edge.
• Middlebury wouldn't back down, cutting the deficit to one on a pair of occasions, but Sophia Lindus was able to record the final kill to give the Cardinals the 25-23 win and force a deciding fifth set.
• The Panthers jumped out to a 5-2 edge in the final frame following a kill from Gabbie O'Toole. 
• Wesleyan answered and eventually took its first lead of the stanza (11-10) on a kill from Lindus.
• Middlebury tallied the next point to deadlock the match again, but the Cardinals responded with a 4-0 burst to secure the 15-11 triumph. 

NOTES

• Prior to the start of the match, the Panthers honored seniors Kelly Ferrero, Kraczkowsky, Lange and Lexi Linafelter. 
• Harrison tallied her ninth double-double of the season, recording 20 kills and 20 digs during the contest while tallying six blocks.
• Kraczkowsky recorded a career-high 17 kills during the match. 
• O'Toole tallied a season-high 50 assists, eclipsing the mark for just the third time in her career, while also digging out 19 balls.
• Middlebury and Wesleyan played for the 32nd time.

The Panthers close out the regular season on Saturday when they entertain Trinity at 2:00 p.m.