The #3 Middlebury women's ice hockey team battled #9 Endicott on Saturday afternoon, but the Gulls broke a 2-2 tie with 13:30 remaining and fought off a late charge to hand the Panthers their first loss of the season 3-2. The contest was the opening game of the Panther/Cardinal Classic.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The hosts looked for the first goal with 4:08 expired. Olivia McManus fired a bid from the right point that Gull goalie Lauren Ferrari stopped with her right pad.
• Endicott manufactured a chance just 22 seconds later. Ella Rago had a shot from the right side, but Sophia Will read the attempt and made the save with her left pad.
• Avery McInerny nearly put Middlebury on the board at the 6:45 mark, but netminder Lauren Ferrari caught the opportunity from the left circle.
• Endicott grabbed a 1-0 advantage at the 12:20 mark when Mackenzie Graham lifted a shot that tucked inside the right post.
• The Panthers knotted the contest at the 3:06 mark of the second stanza. Susannah Ward fired a pass to the right post that Zoe Pincelli corralled and poked past Ferrari.
• With 15 minutes left in the stanza, Rago had a two-on-one chance from the right faceoff circle that Will gloved.
• Middlebury grabbed the lead with an extra skater three minutes later. McManus and Caroline Thomas played tic-tac-toe and found Trinity Walsh between the faceoff circles. The rookie fired a one-timer that sailed into the back of the net with 6:30 expired for a 2-1 advantage.
• The visitors tied the contest at 2-2 with 6.6 seconds left in the period. Julia Carrigan tapped a pass from behind the net. 
• With 15:26 to go in the final frame, Peyton Kennedy ripped a bid from the left faceoff circle but the cross-crease shot was stopped by Ferrari.
• Endicott took the lead with 6:30 elapsed. Maddie DiNardo sent a shot that Will stopped with her pads. The puck bounced out to Abbey Agrodnia for a rebound that sailed into the right side of the net for a 3-2 edge.
• Middlebury turned up the pressure with 7:40 to go. A rising shot between the faceoff circles by McManus was tracked and gloved by Ferrari.
• The Panthers had four shots in succession over 13 seconds starting at the 15:39 mark that Ferrari stonewalled.
• Middlebury emptied its net and added an extra skater after a Gull penalty with 37 ticks left. The hosts ripped five shots in the waning seconds, but could not find the back of the net as Endicott held on for the 3-2 triumph.

NOTES

• Walsh extended her point streak with her third goal of the campaign, while Pincelli added her second tally.
• McManus handed out her team-leading sixth assist.
• Jocelyn Means and Ward each had their first helper in the navy and white.
• The programs met for the 14th time.

Middlebury plays in the consolation contest of the Panther/Cardinal Classic on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. against the loser of #1 University of Wisconsin-River Falls and #6 Plattsburgh State.