MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – The Connecticut College women's ice hockey team will play Middlebury in the quarterfinals of the NESCAC tournament on Saturday, February 25 at 3 p.m.

The fourth-seeded Panthers will host the fifth-seeded Camels at Chip Kenyon Arena. The two teams met earlier in the season in a pair of matchups. Following a 1-1 draw on January 27, the Camels triumphed 2-1 in the second game for the team's first win over Middlebury since 2017.

The Panthers hold the lead in the postseason series, holding a record of 4-1 over the Camels.

Conn finished the regular season with an overall record of 12-11-1, including a win-loss total of 6-9-1 in conference play. The Camels are in search of their first ever NESCAC title. The program last reached the semifinals in 2018.

Senior Melanie Conca (Nutley, N.J.) is the team's top scorer with 18 total points. Her 14 goals ranked as the third-highest in the NESCAC. First year Serena Seiple (Wilmette, Ill.) is tied for  second on the team with senior Kelly Matthews (Abington, Mass.) with 11 points. Casey Chesner (Great Falls, Va.), Caroline O'Keefe (Winthrop, Mass.) and Claire Sammons (Naperville, Ill.) have also been key contributors on offense. 

Senior Abby Wieczorek (Winnetka, Ill.) has been an essential cog in goal for the Camels. Wieczorek recorded a .926 save percentage and logged two shutouts over the course of the regular season. 

Middlebury finished the regular season with an overall record of 15-6-3 and a NESCAC record of 10-4-2. The Panthers, who have played in seven consecutive championship games, have qualified for every NESCAC Championship and own 11 NESCAC titles, the most among any school in the conference.

Middlebury is led by Jenna Letterie who leads the team in assists (14) and points (23) while ranking second in the conference with a .643 faceoff win percentage. Britt Nawrocki paces the team with 14 goals and six game-winners while sitting right behind Letterie with 22 points. The rookie is tied for second in the NESCAC with five power-play markers and has tallied at least one point in 18 of 24 contests.

The goal has been tended by Sophia Merageas and Sophia Will splitting time and owning .926 save percentages. Merageas is ranked eighth in the country with a .818 winning percentage in goal while ranking 17th with a goals-against average (GAA) of 1.56.

The winner of Saturday's contest will compete in the NESCAC semifinals on March 5.