The #1/top-seeded Middlebury women's lacrosse team outscored #12/fourth-seeded Colby 10-2 in the second and third quarters, pulling away for a 19-6 victory in NESCAC Semifinal action on Saturday at Peter Kohn Field. With the win, the Panthers advance to the conference championship for the 15th time and are seeking their 12th title.  
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• Middlebury grabbed an early 1-0 lead just 31 seconds into the first quarter when Kate Motley weaved through traffic before tucking the ball into the upper-right corner.
• The Panthers increased their advantage 1:27 later when Hope Shue bounced a shot past Colby goalie Sarah Hearns.
• The Mules answered with goals by Kins Helmer and Julia Maimonis 32 seconds apart, tying the contest at 2-2 with 11:37 left.
• The hosts responded with the game's next three tallies over roughly seven minutes, capped by an individual effort from Susan Rowley for a 5-2 lead at 4:48.
• Goals by Tori Congdon and Julia Jardina pulled the Mules to within one (5-4), but a tally from a tough angle by Skylar Lach just before time expired in the opening quarter gave Middlebury a 6-4 edge.
• The Panthers rattled off five-unanswered goals during a 6:17 stretch of the second stanza, including a pair from Shue. The run was capped on a fast-break goal from Sara Ellinghaus for an 11-4 advantage with 5:29 left before halftime. 
• The teams traded tallies over the remainder of the frame as Colby's Ally Franz scored on a wraparound bid and Ellinghaus converted on a shot into the top corner for a 12-5 halftime lead.
• The Mules and Panthers swapped goals to start the third quarter, before Maggie Coughlin, Motley and Shue struck to send the game to running time with a 16-6 advantage with one frame to go.
• Rowley found the back of the net for her fourth goal, before Ellinghaus completed her hat trick and Jamee Numan completed the scoring with her seventh goal of the season between the legs of Hearns for the final 19-6 score.

NOTES

• Shue posted four goals to give her 247 career points, moving her into third place in the program's history.
• Coughlin recorded a pair of assists, giving her 66 to sit in a tie for ninth in Middlebury history.
• The triumph was the Panthers' 45th-straight win and 24th-consecutive victory at home.
• Middlebury advances to the title tilt for the seventh-consecutive year.
• The Panthers and the Mules played for the 43rd time with Middlebury owning a 30-13 overall mark in the all-time series.
• The programs have met 12 times in the NESCAC Tournament, with the Panthers holding a slight 7-5 edge. The contest marked the second-straight season that the programs met in the semifinal round.

The squad will take on #3/second-seeded Wesleyan at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday in the championship game.