The Middlebury women's basketball team stayed within a possession for much of Tuesday evening's contest with #4 Smith, but a 12-5 run to open the fourth quarter helped the Bears surge ahead and seal a 65-52 triumph over the Panthers.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The visitors grabbed the momentum to start the contest, jumping out to an 11-2 lead with 5:42 left. Felicia Fongemie led the charge with four points.
• After Smith stretched the lead to 10 (15-5), the Panther offense found its footing. Calie Messina drained a three-pointer to spark eight consecutive points, trimming the deficit to 15-13 after the opening 10 minutes.
• The Middlebury trend carried over into the second stanza. A three-pointer by Margot Newman and a bucket from Gabby Stuart pushed the Panthers ahead 18-15 at the 9:24 mark.
• Both sides traded the lead until five straight points from Messina guided Middlebury to a 23-19 advantage with 2:49 remaining in the first half.
• Smith cut the lead to one with a Uta Nakamura three on its next trip down the floor before Teagan Lind connected from three-point range to keep the four-point advantage (26-22) heading into the locker room.
• The visitors flipped the script to open the third stanza, rolling out a 12-3 run spanning 2:33 to regain a 34-29 lead. Ella Sylvester headlined the run with four points.
• Middlebury did not go away. A jumper by Lind capped a 9-4 surge to knot the contest at 38-38 with 1:55 left.
• Smith had the last laugh of the quarter, as Maggie Fleming drained a three before the third-quarter clock expired to help her side jump back ahead by three (44-41).
• After a layup by Islay Moore, the Bears tallied 12 of the next 15 to stretch the advantage to 56-46 with 4:58 left.
• Middlebury could not get any closer than eight over the final stretch as Smith earned the 65-52 triumph. 

NOTES

• Messina led all scorers with 13 points and made three shots from beyond the arc. The performance stretched the senior's streak of double-figures to three straight contests.
• Stuart and Moore joined Messina with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Moore also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
• The sides met for the 11th time with Middlebury holding a 6-5 edge in the all-time series.

The Panthers continue their three-game homestand by welcoming Connecticut College for conference action on Friday at 7:00 p.m.