Lewiston, Maine (Russell Street Track & Field) – Bates College men's soccer continues to seek its first taste of a NESCAC triumph as the Bobcats dropped a 3-0 decision to Middlebury College in in Sunday action.
 
Bates (3-4 overall) slips to 0-4 vs. conference foes while the visiting Panthers move to 4-1-2 (1-1-2 NESCAC) this autumn.
 
Tyler Payne (So.-London, England) drained the opening tally of the contest at 22:30 when he slipped in a Kyle Nilsson (So.-Menlo Park, Calif.) feed. Casey Lund (So.-El Segundo, Calif.) made it 2-0 Panthers at 41:02 after heading in an initial save by Bates' keeper, Nico Hessel (Fy.-Brattleboro, Vt.). Both goals were the third of the year, respectively, for Payne and Nilsson.
 
Jordan Saint-Louis also netted his third of the season as the junior tapped home a free ball in the 65th minute (64:21), icing the Middlebury victory.
 
Despite the outcome, Bates still outshot the Panthers, 12-11. However, the victors owned a 7-0 cushion when it came to shots on frame.
 
Ryan Grady (Jr.-Deerfield, Ill.), even without facing a shot on net, earns the keeper win for Middlebury. Hessel secured four saves in the effort for the Bobcats.
 
The garnet and white returns to action Saturday, Oct. 1 with a NESCAC home match vs. Trinity College. Start time is 1:30 p.m.