The #3/second-seeded Middlebury men's soccer team tallied three goals in the opening 12:22 and never looked back during a 4-2 victory against seventh-seeded Hamilton in NESCAC Quarterfinal action. With the win, the Panthers move on to the semifinals for the fifth-consecutive season.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The Panthers opened the scoring with 3:55 elapsed. Shane Farrell sliced in a corner that bounced off Luke Madden's head and towards a cluster of blue and white. Ari Klayman flicked the ball out towards a charging Farrell, who laced a shot into the top-left portion for the 1-0 edge.
• Middlebury added to its lead a minute later off the foot of Dugan. The sophomore connected with Sawin on a back pass that was started by a great cross from Hank Nelson and sliced his bid past Hamilton goalie Finn Wheeler to make it 2-0.
• The offense continued to churn out opportunities and capitalized again in the 13th minute. Kyle Nilsson chucked in a perfect throw-in that bounced off the head of Sawin. Gavin Randolph finished the job, flicking the ball into the lower-left 90 to triple the lead.
• Hamilton manufactured its first chance at the 20:51 mark with a powerful strike from Patrick Ferrare, but goalie Joey Waterman cupped the ball to his chest to thwart the chance.
• Middlebury had the final attempt of the opening half with 33 ticks left, but a shot by Anderson Gardner slipped just left of the post to keep it 3-0 heading into halftime.
• The Continentals came out firing to open the second stanza. Luke Ehrenfreund whipped in a corner that Waterman punched out of the box to keep the visitors at bay.
• Hamilton found the back of the net at the 49:03 mark after a Panther defender was called for a handball in the box. Luke Peplowski stepped up to the penalty dot and tucked a shot past  Waterman that found the bottom-left corner to make it a 3-1 ballgame. 
• Ari Klayman looked to shift the momentum back to Middlebury about two minutes later, but his bid from the top-left corner was shooed away by Wheeler.
• Another strong chance came for the home team at the 59:17 mark. Klayman crossed in a pass toward Keagan Harder, who was alone on the left side of the goal. A Contential defender got to Harder in time, blocking the ball away toward midfield. 
• Hamilton continued to apply pressure and cooked up an opportunity in the 75th minute off a free kick from Pandelis Margaronis. Waterman stepped up big time, timing his dive to perfection to smother the shot that was destined for the bottom-right portion of the net.
• The Continentals cut the deficit to 3-2 with 81:30 elapsed. Margaronis sent a crisp pass to his right toward Peplowski, who finished middle left to put the visitors within one.
• Middlebury shut the door on a comeback chance in the 85th minute. Klayman worked a long throw-in into the goalie box. Gardner timed a shoulder flick to perfection, finding Luke Madden, who muscled the ball into the back of the net to seal the 4-2 victory.

NOTES

• Nelson and Gardner tailled their first career assists and became the 17th and 18th Panther to record a point this season.
• Sawin had two helpers in Saturday's win.
• Randolph tied Dugan and Harder with his team-best sixth goal of the campaign. He also now leads the team with 15 points.
• Middlebury and Hamilton squared off for the third time in the NESCAC Quarterfinals. The Panthers have won the last two with a 2-0 victory in 2022 and the 4-2 result on Saturday.

Middlebury moves on to the NESCAC Semifinals on Saturday with the location and opponent still to be determined.