Courtesy Tufts Sports Information

Box Score

MEDFORD, Mass. - Middlebury College will play for its seventh straight NESCAC men's lacrosse championship after defeating Tufts University, 8-7, in the semifinal round of the 2007 NESCAC Men's Lacrosse Championship on Saturday afternoon at Bello Field.

The Panthers (9-6) will face Wesleyan University for the NESCAC championship on Sunday at noon, with the winner earning an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. The two teams will be playing each other in the conference championship game for the fourth straight year.

Tufts, which falls to 12-3, will await a possible at-large berth into the NCAA's.

Middlebury quickly jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first five minutes against Tufts, with senior tri-captain Nick Bastis (Old Greenwich Conn.) scoring and assisting goals. Jumbo junior Matt Caple (Wellesley, Mass.) broke the run at 7:17 of the first period and the score was 3-1 Panthers heading into the second quarter.

Tufts rallied to score four straight goals overall, with sophomore Clem McNally's (Farhills, N.J.) man-up goal with 1:05 remaining in the half giving the Jumbos a 4-3 advantage. Middlebury sophomore Mike Stone (Boston, Mass.) scored a clutch goal with only six seconds left until halftime to knot things up at 4-4.

Stone's goal started a Middlebury four-goal run that put the Panthers up 7-4 on Stone's second goal of the game at 3:15 of the third quarter. Caple netted his second of the game with 21 seconds left in the period to draw Tufts within 7-5.

Stone assisted Jim Cabrera (Old Greenwich, Conn.) on Middlebury's last goal at 9:47 of the fourth quarter for an 8-5 advantage that they held into the final five minutes. McNally's second goal at 4:52 made it 8-6, and then sophomore middie Chase Bibby (Marblehead, Mass.) scored with just 27 seconds remaining to make it a one-goal game. Tufts got possession after Middlebury wont he face-off, but was unable to create a scoring opportunity.

This is the second straight season that Middlebury has knocked Tufts out of the NESCAC Tournament in a one-goal game, including last year's 12-11 triple overtime semi-final. On Saturday, Bastis scored a goal with two assists for the Panthers, while senior tri-captain Alex Palmisano (Southport, Conn.) made 13 saves for the win.

Senior tri-captain Mark Warner (Wading River, N.Y.) had two assists for the Tufts attack, while sophomore goalie Mark Harrigan (Darnestown, Md.) finished with 15 saves.