Split Win and Loss over the Weekend, Back to Work We Go

Sophomore Will de Quant

Panther Family,

The young men of Middlebury men’s tennis began last weekend with a 9-0 victory over Trinity (Conn.) here on our home Proctor courts. After a rain delay we moved inside to play our doubles prosets, with Will/Lubo and Peter/Timo winning with scores of 8-4. Playing #3 that day was Allen/Kyle, putting an 8-0 victory on the board to finish the sweep. In singles, after moving back outside, the Panthers refused to lose a set. This included freshman Alex V. at the #6 spot, concluding the 9-0 victory for the Panthers in preparation for our match against #8 Wesleyan (Conn.) that next afternoon.

In doubles we were put in a hole early against the talented Wesleyan team, going down breaks in multiple prosets. Peter/Timo were first off with an 8-3 loss, making good plays but making unforced errors throughout the competition. Later on things got scary as our #1 team of Lubo/Will served 6-7, 0-40, triple match point, while meantime Kyle and Hamid were fighting to stay in their respective match. Incredibly Will and Lubo came back to hold that game, taking the comeback all the way to the finish with a 9-7 victory to even the score at 1-1. Kyle and Hamid lost by a score of 8-6 at #2, and there we were 1-2 going into our six singles matches. Bob reminded us that we had been put in situations like this before, this was a real test but one we were optimistic we would handle. 

At #2 singles Will de Quant played an absolutely inspiring match to even the overall score at 2-2 with his straight-set victory over a very strong Michael Liu. Hamid battled in the second set against his opponent at #3 singles, getting breaks back after getting broken, but in the end it was a Wesleyan victory. Timo was doing everything he could to turn his match around against a very strong Cameron Daniels, but with a 7-6, 6-2 loss, the Panthers were down 2-4 with three matches remaining. The battle persisted as all remaining players (#1 Lubo, #4 Kyle, and #6 Allen) found themselves in third sets. Both Lubo and Kyle were able to hang tough and eventually broke away in amazing fashion to even the score at 4-4 with 6-3 third set victories. Allen fought with everything he had in his third set, but in the end it was a Wesleyan 5-4 victory. We fought extremely hard that day, losses like that are never easy to stomach, but hey, that’s sports. Back to work with some new motivation and an overall knowing that we will learn and grow from this experience. Eyes on the prize: NESCAC'S and NCAA's.   

Meet the Player: Lubomir Cuba

Hometown: Massapequa Park, NY

Year: sophomore

Height: 6’2”

Weight: 170

Major: Economics

Favorite tennis player growing up and why: Roger Federer…Everything he does just seems so effortless. He is also the best player in history so there isn’t much you can dislike about the guy.

Favorite movie: Step Brothers

Favorite food: sushi

Favorite Ben and Jerry’s ice cream flavor: cookies and cream

If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go and why: Peru…I’ve always enjoyed adventurous vacations and in Peru I would be able to hike Machu Picchu, rock climb, surf and just explore the area.

Why you chose Middlebury College: I’ve always wanted to be part of a national championship program as well as study at a top college. It just so happens Middlebury offers both.

Favorite Middlebury tennis moment thus far: Spending homecoming weekend with the team and winning the ITA Regional tournament.

Plenty of action ahead as Middlebury plays #13 Amherst (@Amherst) at 1pm on Sunday April 30^th. This will be our last regular season match as we prepare for the conference tournament the following weekend in Williamstown. Please stay updated via twitter, facebook, and Instagram, and as always big thanks to parents, families, and fans for your amazing support.


Sincerely,

Middlebury Men’s Coaching Staff