The Middlebury women's basketball team cruised to an 80-36 triumph over Norwich to commence its home schedule on Tuesday evening from Pepin Gymnasium.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The sides traded buckets early in the opening quarter, with the Cadets taking a slim 10-9 edge with 4:51 elapsed. Sarah Chenette tallied five of the first nine Panther points, while Cassidy Kittredge and Gracie Laster each had four early tallies.
• Teagan Lind drove to the basket and dropped in a layup on the next trip down, sparking a 14-0 run. Islay Moore cashed in a feed from Calie Messina from beyond the arc with nine seconds left to cap the spurt, pushing the hosts ahead 23-10 through 10 minutes.
• After conceding the initial basket in the second quarter, Middlebury continued its surge. Lind led the charge with four points as part of a 9-0 blitz to extend the advantage to 32-12 with 6:15 remaining in the first half.
• The Panthers continued to put up points as the second stanza came to a close. Keeley Baglio received a pass from Molly Keaveney in the corner and buried a three with 44 ticks left, giving the Panthers a 42-16 advantage at the break. Lind and Baglio combined for 14 of Middlebury's 19 points in the frame.
• Kittredge, Jessie Zimmerman and Laster gave the Cadets energy after the intermission, combining to outpace the hosts 6-5 in the first three minutes of the third. Messina nailed her second third-quarter look from range in response, but Norwich added four straight to bring the margin to 50-26.
• Moore, Chenette and Lind restored the Middlebury momentum with the next three makes from the floor, prompting a Cadet timeout. The guests added a three after the stoppage, but Chenette tallied four points amidst an 8-0 rally to send the game to the fourth with a 64-29 score.
• The Panthers outpaced their foe 16-7 in the final 10 minutes to wrap up the 80-36 triumph. Baglio tacked on eight points in the session.

NOTES

• Five Panthers eclipse double-digit scoring figures in the win, led by 15 points each from Chenette and Lind.
• Messina logged her third career game with at least four made three-pointers.
• The squad's 80 points are the most in a home opener since tallying 87 in a victory over Clarkson in 2021.
• With the win, head coach KJ Krasco earned her 150th victory at Middlebury.
• Tuesday marked the 62nd meeting between the Panthers and Cadets, with Middlebury winning five of the last seven matchups.

The Panthers embark on a two-game road stint, beginning against Union on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.