AMHERST, Mass. – The fourth-seeded Middlebury Panthers edged the second-seed Wesleyan women's soccer team in penalty kicks, 3-2, to win the NESCAC title for the second time in three seasons and the fifth time overall.  The two sides played to a spirited 1-1 draw through 110 minutes in regulation and two overtime periods to set the stage for PKs on Sunday from Hitchcock Field on the campus of Amherst College.

Middlebury (12-3-3) scored the opening goal in the 37^th minute off the head of Rose Evans but Wesleyan (14-1-2) answered less than eight minutes later as Kate Hausladen '23 fired a shot from the top of the box that deflected in off the inside of the left post with just 42 seconds left in the first half. Wesleyan outshot Middlebury 10-5 in the second half and 15-8 in the remainder of play, but neither side found the go-ahead goal as penalty kicks were used to decide the winner.
 
In the penalty kick shootout, with Middlebury attempting first, the Cardinals went down 2-0 before Caty Clements '25 stepped to the circle and put home the first successful PK for Wesleyan. After Middlebury's Lucy VanNewkirk hit the crossbar, Gianna Argento '21, G'22 converted for Wesleyan to knot the shootout at 2-2. Sarah Hammond '22 came up with a big save on the Panther's next attempt but so did Middlebury's goalkeeper VanNewkirk, who came off the bench after not playing the entire match up until the shootout. Isabella DiBenedetto put home her attempt in the fifth round, putting the pressure on Wesleyan in a must-convert attempt and VanNewkirk came up with a match-sealing stop as the Middlebury celebration was on.

The match goes down as a 1-1 tie with penalty kicks serving only to determine which team is crowned league champion. The draw continues Wesleyan's unbeaten run which now stands at 10 straight games (8-0-2) dating back to Oct. 9. The Cardinals will wait to see if they are one of the 20 teams selected for an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament when the field is announced on Monday, Nov. 8 at 1 PM. Wesleyan entered the week ranked 14^th nationally in the United Soccer Coaches poll and second in the NCAA Region 1 rankings (one of 10 regions across NCAA Div. III).

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Wesleyan was on the front foot from the opening whistle, holding the ball on the right wing in the Amherst box on a pair of occasions but Audrey Lavey '23 saw both of her shots on-target saved by Middlebury's starting GK Sydney Poppinga
• Middlebury then took the lead against the run of play, as a corner kick taken by Ellie Bavier went far post to the head of Evans who made no mistake, going across to the right post and finding the back of the net to make it 1-0 Middlebury in the 37^th minute
• Just as the game's first goal was scored, Wesleyan had an immediate response as Hausladen, who was subbed on just 10 minutes prior, one-timed a shot from just outside the box. The right-footed strike deflected off the inside of the left post and in as Poppinga made a diving attempt to her right, only to see the equalizing goal zip past her outstretched hands

 

• Hausladen's goal sent shockwaves through the Cardinal bench which carried over into the second half as Wesleyan nearly scored the go-ahead goal off the foot of Isabelle Martin '23 who had a shot ring off the crossbar in the 49^th minute
• The game then settled down until the 76^th minute as Melissa Wilhelm '22 fired a shot from distance that took a deflection in the box. With the ball heading on-target, Poppinga was alert and made the diving stop to her right to keep the score tied 1-1
• Neither side had much in the way of scoring chances in both overtime periods as Hammond made three comfortable saves while Poppinga was smart to come off her line to knock away a cross from the wing that Hausladen was running onto at the opposite post

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Hammond made seven saves in net for the Cardinals, just one off her season-high
• Wesleyan held a 21-14 edge in shots but tied Middlebury in shots on-target (8-8) while the two sides also generated three corner kicks apiece

This was the first NESCAC title game appearance for Wesleyan who have already set a new single-season program record for wins (14)