The #1/top-seeded Middlebury women's lacrosse team opened the NESCAC Tournament with a resounding 16-2 victory over #25/eighth-seeded Williams in quarterfinal action. The Panthers will host the remainder of the bracket with the semifinals taking place on Saturday, May 3 and the championship on Sunday, May 4 at Peter Kohn Field.
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• Middlebury opened the scoring with 1:18 elapsed. Maggie Coughlin sent the ball from behind the goal to Skylar Lach who twisted the shaft of her stick between defenders and slotted her shot into the upper-left corner.
• Just under two minutes later, the Panthers took a 2-0 edge. Kendall Coyne caused a turnover in the defensive end and Haley Hamilton scooped up the ball and cleared it before dishing it to Coughlin. An over-the-shoulder shot by Kelcey Dion on the pass from Coughlin put Middlebury ahead by two.
• The Ephs responded with back-to-back tallies. Anna Miller found a cutting Katy McCullough who slipped the ball into the upper-right corner with 8:50 left. A little over two minutes later, Franny Donohue's shot got a piece of a Middlebury defender and trickled over the line to knot the contest at 2-2.
• Middlebury answered with 3:44 showing on the clock when Hope Shue drove into the arc solo and found nylon for the 3-2 edge.
• Lach put the Panthers up 4-2 with just seven ticks to go, spinning around a defender and slipping the ball into the goal.
• Williams looked to slice into the lead at the 12:45 mark, but Claudia Russell's close-range shot ricocheted off each pipe and bounced back into play.
• Middlebury rattled off five-straight goals to take a 9-2 lead at the break. Dion sparked the run with an underhanded bid at the 10:56 mark followed by a free-position marker from Kate Motley. Shue tallied twice and Adams added a marker to close out the half. 
• The Panthers did not let up out of the intermission, as Sophia Lee converted from the arc with 10:04 on the clock. 
• Shue, Adams and Dion each tallied during the third quarter to give Middlebury a 13-2 advantage and force running time.
• With 1:40 expired in the final frame, a persistent Coughlin scooped up a groundball on her initial shot that was thwarted by goalie Caroline Pratt and found nylon.
• Britt Nawrocki and Jamee Numan closed out the scoring to give the Panthers the 16-2 triumph. 

NOTES

• The programs played for the second time in four days, and 58th overall as Middlebury won its 41st triumph.
• With five points (1G, 4A) today, Coughlin surpassed 200 in her career (204) and now has 100 helpers in navy and white. She becomes the fourth player in program history to have 100 career goals and 100 assists.
• Adams collected 10 draw controls during the win, marking the second double-digit performance this year.
• Kylie Wilson matched her career high in groundballs (four), while causing a team-high four turnovers.
• Elizabeth Savage made five stops in the final 30 minutes of action. 

The Panthers will make their 20th appearance in the NESCAC Semifinals, hosting #7/fifth-seeded Wesleyan on Saturday at 12:00 p.m.