The top-ranked Middlebury women's ice hockey team fell behind early and could not come back in a 4-1 loss at Williams on Saturday. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• Rachel Neyman looked to put the visitors on the board with 16:57 remaining in the opener, but her bid from the right faceoff circle bounced off the blocker of Ephs' goalie Erin Pye.
• Williams grabbed the lead at the 11:57 mark. Maddie Zack wristed a shot that ricocheted off the left blocker of netminder Sophia Will. Chloe Noxon got to the loose puck first and pushed it past a sprawled-out Will to take a 1-0 edge.
• Jordan Hower mustered up a chance immediately after the Ephs' goal, racing down the right side of the ice and firing a shot that Pye guided aside. 
• Williams nearly doubled its lead in the waning seconds of the opener off consecutive bids by Claire Murphy. Will recorded a blocker stop before snagging the final shot of the period with her glove to keep it a one-goal deficit. 
• At the 8:49 mark of the second stanza, Raia Schluter skated between two Eph defenders and flipped a rising backhanded bid that Pye corralled.
• Williams extended the advantage to 2-0 with 9:15 elapsed. Charlotte Fetherston snagged the puck near the blueline and blitzed toward the left side of the net, sliding a cross-crease shot that tucked inside the right post.
• Britt Nawrocki manufactured a chance with 7:33 remaining on a wrister from the right point, but Pye smothered the bid despite a Panther screen in front.
• The Ephs made it a 3-0 contest with 3:42 left in the second. Annie Gallagher sent a backhanded pass to Katherine Kong, who tucked the puck inside the left post. 
• Middlebury got on the board just 32 ticks into the final period. Hower surged up the left boards and centered a pass to Cat Appleyard. The captain pushed the puck past a diving Pye to cut the deficit to a pair (3-1).
• Williams answered 29 seconds later, as Noxon tallied her second of the contest to rebuild a three-goal advantage.
• The Panthers kept up the pressure throughout the rest of the period, but Pye stopped all 14 shots on goal to secure the 4-1 triumph.

NOTES

• Appleyard tallied a marker for the fourth time in the last five contests.
• Middlebury and Williams met for the 92nd time. 

The Panthers close their regular season with a two-game road trip at #12 Colby beginning Friday at 7:00 p.m.