Trinity Walsh scored 56 seconds into Sunday's overtime to propel the #4 Middlebury women's ice hockey team to an exciting 3-2 come-from-behind triumph over Wesleyan. The Panthers completed the NESCAC weekend sweep after defeating the Cardinals on Saturday, 4-1.
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• The hosts looked to strike early with 1:09 elapsed in the opening period when Beats Tura sent a bouncing shot toward the net. Middlebury goalie Sophia Will smothered the bid.
• Wesleyan took a 1-0 lead at the 6:30 mark. Dylan Greene poked in a loose puck outside the crease that found space into the right side of the goal past a sprawling Will.
• The Panthers earned a power-play chance seconds later. The best opportunity with the extra skater came a minute in the final moments as Alyssa Frazier's wrister from the right circle was stopped by Wesleyan goalie Sami Smith.
• The Cardinals nearly doubled their lead at 13:30, but Will pushed forward and denied a rising shot with her blocker off the stick of Eve Omura.
• Middlebury looked for the equalizer in the late stages of the frame with four shots in the final 38 seconds. The best chance came on the initial bid on a slapshot from the point through traffic by Olivia McManus that Smith corralled.
• Wesleyan had a quality opportunity when Carly Ward tipped a pass from the point that Will moved to her right and saved using her pad at 9:30.
• The Panthers leveled the game with 6:52 showing on the clock. Avery McInerny won a faceoff and sent a pass to McManus. She shoveled a cross-ice feed to Ward, who sniped a shot from the right dot that found space in the left side of the net.
• Will saved a quartet of Wesleyan chances in a span of a minute during the early portion of the third period. The top opportunity arose at 4:09 elapsed with a wraparound bid by Aimee Seppenwolde that the goalie stonewalled on the right post.
• Liv Fernandez skated with the puck through the neutral zone four minutes later, but her rising attempt clanged off the pipe.
• The Cardinals regained the advantage at the 12:33 mark. Caroline Humber collected a loose puck between the circles and blasted a shot under the crossbar for a 2-1 edge.
• Middlebury earned a power play 21 seconds later and cashed in with 2:06 remaining. Kate Flynn worked her way into the left circle before burying a shot that snuck inside the left post to make it a 2-2 tally.
• The Panthers had the last chance in regulation. Peyton Kennedy blasted a bid that Smith saved sliding to her right with 35 ticks remaining.
• Skating 3-on-3 in the extra session, Lilly Place had the lone chance for the Cardinals with a surging bid on the left that Will denied on the right post with 4:35 remaining
• Seconds later, Walsh gained possession of the puck in the neutral zone. She slithered around Smith in her crease and muscled a shot into the left side of the goal to give Middlebury a 3-2 victory.

NOTES

• Walsh's tally was her second of her career, while the assist by Frazier was her first point in the navy and white jersey. 
• McInerny has recorded a point in all five games this season.
• The squad was impressive at the faceoff dot, claiming 31-of-53 chances with McInerny and Zoe Pincelli securing 16 and eight, respectively. 
• The Panthers and Wesleyan met for the 76th time with Middlebury garnering its 69th triumph in the series.

The team returns to action next weekend when it hosts the Panther/Cardinal Classic on Saturday and Sunday from Chip Kenyon '85 Arena. Middlebury squares off with #12 Endicott at 3:00 p.m., followed by a contest between #1 Wisconsin-River Falls and #6 Plattsburgh State at 6:00 p.m. The consolation and championship games will take place the following day at 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.