NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The Norwich University women's basketball team saw their hopes of winning the 2024 Ed Hockenbury Classic Championship dashed, falling to intrastate rival Middlebury College, 80-42, in the confines of Andrews Hall on Saturday afternoon.

Maren McGinn (Georgia, Vt.) was the lone Cadet in double-figures, pouring in 17 points on 7-10 shooting to go with a team-best eight caroms.  Kiley O'Brien (Kingston, Mass.) was next in the scorebook offensively, adding six points and six rebounds.

The Panthers wasted no time asserting themselves, courtesy of back-to-back baskets from Alexa Mustafaj to give Middlebury a 4-0 lead just 30 seconds into the contest.  Norwich promptly answered, surging ahead on six-straight points off a Erika Thomas (Burlington, N.C.) trey and an old-fashioned three-point play by McGinn.  It was all Middlebury after that, however, as the visitors racked up 11 straight en route to taking a 12-point lead at one point.

Norwich continued to keep the game close for the opening five minutes of the second frame, maintaining the Panther lead to 13 after McGinn knocked down a three-pointer.  The Panther offense exploded once again, building a lead that ballooned to as large as 29 at the break.

The Cadets were unable to make any ground from there, keeping Middlebury within a 30-point range throughout the third quarter before the Panthers rallied for their largest lead of the day of 42 in the waning minutes.

Keeley Baglio led all scorers, tallying 18 for the Panthers off the bench, while Mustafaj added 17.

After her 17-point performance against the Panthers a day after posting a 21-point and 13-rebound double-double against Wellesley College in the opening game of the Hockenbury Classic, McGinn was tapped to the Hockenbury All-Classic Team.

In the consolation game between Keene State College and Wellesley College, the tandem of Valerie Luizzi and Brynn Rautiola was too much for Wellesley to handle, as the Owls secured a 65-53 win over the Blue.

The Keene State duo combined for nine threes en route to racking up 44 points between the two, in a game that saw 12 different lead changes.

• All-Classic Team:
  • Wellesley:
    • #2 Trinity Barrow
  • Keene State:
    • #3 Brynn Rautiola
  • Norwich:
    • #34 Maren McGinn
  • Middlebury:
    • #24 Augusta Dixon
    • #12 Alexa Mustafaj (Most Valuable Player)

The Cadets will close out the month of December with another clash against a Vermont foe, traveling to Lyndonville, Vt., on Tuesday, Dec. 10, for a 6:00 p.m. battle with Vermont State University Lyndon.  Norwich will return home to Andrews Gym next calendar year, hosting Anna Maria College on Tuesday, Jan. 7, for the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) opener.