Middlebury women's basketball player Alexa Mustafaj tallied a career-high 43 points, helping the Panthers top Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 65-51 on Tuesday evening. Mustafaj's point total is tied for the most scored by a NESCAC player this season and ranks fifth all-time in the program record book.
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• Middlebury started the game with a 9-4 run, capped by a three from Mustafaj with 1:47 left on the first quarter clock.
• The Engineers responded with a 9-2 burst that spanned the end of the opening stanza and into the second, taking a 15-11 edge with 8:31 to go in the half.
• The Panthers regained their lead with a 7-0 solo-spurt from Mustafaj, giving the visitors a 25-22 advantage at the 2:39 mark.
• Angela Choi made it a one-point game with a layup, but Mustafaj tallied five unanswered points to close out the stanza, giving Middlebury a 29-24 halftime lead.
• The Panthers started to pull away in the third quarter, rattling off a 16-4 run to take a commanding 45-28 advantage with 2:14 left on the clock.
• MIT registered four of the final six points, closing the gap to 47-32 heading into the final frame.
• Out of the break, the Engineers continued to cut into the Middlebury lead, slicing it to single digits (56-47) on a jumper from Kamsi Nwogu with 1:57 remaining.
• Middlebury closed out the contest with a 9-4 run to secure the 65-51 victory.

NOTES

• Mustafaj made 10 free throws during the contest, moving her into fourth place on the single-season list with 100. The Panther now has 498 points this season, ranking fifth all-time in program history. 
• Augusta Dixon grabbed a career-high 22 boards, while also tallying 12 points for her seventh-straight double-double.
• The programs met for the first time this evening.

The Panthers close out the regular season with three-straight NESCAC road contests. This Friday, Middlebury travels to Wesleyan for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off.