LEWISTON, Maine -- Senior Maria Femia was the lone goal scorer for the No. 14 nationally ranked Bates field hockey team as the Bobcats fell to No. 1 Middlebury in a tight contest Saturday by a score of 3-1.

Middlebury (13-1, 8-1 NESCAC) pulled away in the 31st minute thanks to Caroline Segal's second goal to extend the Panther lead to 3-1. The Panthers out-shot the Bobcats (9-5, 5-4 NESCAC) by a tally of 15-5 by the contest's end, with Middlebury having eight of those shots on goal in comparison to Bates' three. 

Femia's (Canton, Mass.) goal was the only spark of offense for the Bobcats on the day, as she notched her fifth of the 2024 campaign. Femia was assisted by junior Lucy Norris (Chicago, Ill.) for the latter's first assist of the season.

Middlebury scored twice in the first half, with Amy Griffin scoring in the ninth minute to put the visitors up 1-0. Bates remained unfazed, with Femia breaking free of the Panthers' back line and ripping a shot into the back of the net in the 19th minute, tying the score at one. But Segal tallied her first goal of the day in the 25th minute to put Middlebury up for good.

Bates had several opportunities in the second half to crawl back into the contest, namely three straight penalty corners in the 39th and 40th minutes, but they were unable to convert on any of them as the Middlebury defense held strong. 

Penalty corners ended up being the deciding factor of the contest, with Middlebury able to convert on two of their five penalty corners, giving them the decisive lead, as Bates was unable to convert on their five penalty opportunities. 

Bates junior goalkeeper Kaili Jacobsen (Fairfield, Conn.) was solid in her role facing down the best team in the nation, ending her day with four saves on seven shots faced. 

Before the game, the Bobcats celebrated Senior Day, honoring their four seniors: Anna Cote (New Gloucester, Maine), Anna Lindeis (New Canaan, Conn.), Amanda Zerbib (Larchmont, N.Y.), and Femia.

The Bobcats will seek to bounce back from the close loss to the Panthers as they return to action for their final game of the regular season on Tuesday, October 29th at 8 p.m. in Waterville, Maine to face archrival Colby.