Waterville, Maine - Despite a strong second-half surge and an aggressive offensive performance, the Colby Men's Lacrosse team fell to the Panthers of Middlebury College 16-9 on Saturday afternoon. The Mules displayed impressive resilience, out shooting the Panthers 36-32 and leading in ground balls 28-22, but a difficult first half proved too much to overcome.

Middlebury jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter, but the Mules found their rhythm late in the period. Eli Chilicki put Colby on the board with his 23rd goal of the season at the 2:09 mark, followed quickly by a strike from Matthew George just 53 seconds later to cut into the deficit.

After a challenging second quarter, Colby emerged from the halftime break with renewed energy. Quinton Delorey sparked a third-quarter comeback attempt, finding the back of the net twice in the frame. The Mules out shot the Panthers 12-7 in the third, as Matias Williams and George added goals to fuel a 4-2 scoring advantage for Colby in the period.

The Mules continued to battle in the final quarter. Chilicki added his second of the game at the 7:05 mark, and Ethan Taerstein followed up with a goal shortly after. Tristan Bassett was a bright spot for the Mules at the "X," winning 10 face offs and collecting a team-high five ground balls to keep the possession game competitive.

Defensively, Drew Gannon led the way with three caused turnovers, while Macon Burgess added four ground balls and a caused turnover. Senior Will Heisler finished the day with nine saves in the cage.

Colby will look to carry the momentum from their strong second-half performance into their next NESCAC on Wednesday against Bates at 7pm.