Box Score Middlebury, Vt. – The Castleton women's soccer team fell in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to in-state opponent Middlebury College by the score of 3-1 on Saturday.
Mallory Costello scored the Spartans' lone goal in the second half, but it wasn't enough as the Panthers pulled away for the win.
Castleton got off to a great start, applying constant pressure to the Panthers' back line of defenders for the first twenty minutes of the game, but all their chances went begging wide. As the first half progressed, the tides turned in the Middlebury's favor as they pressed the Spartans defense for the latter part of the first half.
In the 37th minute, Middlebury's Colby Gibbs opened the scoring. Midfielder Carter Talgo lofted a corner kick high in the air that sailed to the back post of the Castleton goal, where Gibbs elevated for a header that directed the ball over Castleton goalkeeper Kaleigh Newton and into the side netting for the score.
The Panthers were able to convert again early in the second half. In the 56th minute, forward Scarlett Kirk put the Panthers up 2-0. She struck a ball from the top of the 18-yard box and into the bottom corner, just out of the reach of the diving Newton.
The Spartans refused to go down without a fight, however, and notched a goal of their own in the minute. Freshman Sami Ritter lofted the ball up and over the Middlebury defenders where Costello chased it down and fired it past Middlebury goalie Elizabeth Foody. The score was Costello's 20th of the year and brought the Spartans back to within one.
The one goal margin didn't last long as Middlebury scored again on a deflected shot that snuck past Newton. Panthers forward Jamie Soroka fired a shot on goal that deflected off the back of her Middlebury teammate Hannah Robinson and redirected past Newton for the score. The goal increased the Panthers' lead to 3-1, where it would remain.
The Spartans finish their season with a 15-5-1 record. Middlebury improved to 13-2-1 with the win and will face Misericordia tomorrow on their home field in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
