Middlebury College's Lillian Caldwell hammered 12 kills and the Panthers defeated the Hamilton College Continentals in three sets (26-24, 25-22, 25-17) at Hamilton's Margaret Bundy Scott Field House on Friday night. 
 
How It Happened

• There were seven ties and five lead changes in a nail-biting first set. With Hamilton up 18-16, Middlebury went on a 5-0 spurt and claimed a 21-18 advantage. The Continentals rallied, and after a block by Chiara Morley-McLaughlin '24 they were one point away from taking the first set. But Middlebury capitalized on two Hamilton attack errors and added a pair of kills to take set one.
• Tied at 7-7 in the second set, the Panthers embarked on a 7-3 run. Hamilton battled for the lead and found themselves within one at 23-22 on a hard shot by Rylee Bergeron '26. Middlebury wrapped up set two with a Continental service error and a kill. 
• Hamilton trailed by as many as 14 points at 23-9 in the final set before the Continentals fired back with an 8-1 run fueled by a kill by Drew Stimson '25 and three service aces, including two by Pati Cerda '26. 
• The Panthers completed the sweep on a kill by Caldwell.  

Notes

• Hamilton moves to 5-2 overall (1-2 NESCAC) while Middlebury improves to 5-3 (1-2). 
• Middlebury earned their fourth consecutive win over Hamilton.
• Melissa Morelli '24 tallied 26 assists – her seventh consecutive match with 22 or more assists. 
• Carman collected a team-high 12 kills, reaching double digits for the fifth time this season. 
• Bergeron registered nine kills. 
• Cece Nourie '25 led Hamilton with 10 digs. 
• Middlebury's Gabbie O'Toole recorded a career-high 34 assists. 
• Caldwell, Laney Sullivan and Lexi Linafelter all notched double-digit kill totals for the Panthers. 

Next Match 

• The Continentals aim to bounce back on Saturday, Sept. 24 when they face Ithaca College in non-conference play at 3 p.m.