Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Panthers win NCAA Regional, Heading to Kalamazoo for NCAA Final Rounds (18-6)


Two down, three to go! The NCAA tournament is well underway and the Panthers moved smoothly through our first two matches in the Round of 32 and 16. This was no easy task as we played against tough competition, but the Panthers again demonstrated that we love postseason play! The coaching staff is particularly pleased with our progress on the doubles side of the ball, and we have sustained our sharpness in singles as well!

Great photo of Cole Sutton '19 and
Throne Gregory '21... two Panther studs!
Goucher Match Highlights
In our first match, we hit the ground running against Goucher. We got off to a quick start in doubles, sweeping all three matches and did not lose more than three games in any proset. Our singles play then kept the fun rolling, where the Panthers stayed engaged and determined. Cuba (#1 singles) and Guo (#4 singles) were the first to complete their matches both winning 6-0, 6-0 to send the Panthers to the next round. See the full match recap here

MIT Match Highlights
In our round of 16 matchup, we were up against an incredibly talented MIT squad. Knowing it could be a battle, the Panthers came out guns blazing in doubles. The Panthers secured sound victories by Farrell/Vanezis (#2 doubles, 8-3) and Xiao/Eazor (#3 doubles, 8-2). In a tight match at the #1 doubles position, Cuba/Martin played some of their best tennis toward the end of the proset to complete another doubles sweep via an 8-6 win over a tough MIT team. Building on our doubles momentum, Cuba (#1 singles) and Guo (#4 singles) were again the first two players to complete their match and get a win for the Panthers, punching our ticket to the elite eight in Kalamazoo, MI! Full match recap can be seen here

Team photo after our win against MIT!
We blocked out the NCAA banner behind us.
NCAA Final Rounds
The final site for this year’s NCAA tournament is Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, MI. We now have a total of three matches in which we need to be victorious to achieve our aim of winning the national title. It will be a fun challenge and one our guys are really looking forward to tackling.

Three Fun Facts about Middlebury’s History at Kalamazoo College
·      The first ever DIII NCAA National Championships took place in 1976. Coach Thomson’s father and two of his uncle’s played for Kalamazoo College in 1976, and won this inaugural DIII national title.
·      The first of Coach Hansen’s record setting 8 national titles also took place at Kalamazoo College in 1989.
·      This year will be the 8th time that Kalamazoo will host the DIII NCAA National Championships, tied for the most of any school.

Live Scoring and Live Video Links
The most up to date information about live scoring and live video can be found by clicking at the appropriate link on our Schedule/Results page (our sports information team will update these links to the best web addresses as the live scoring and streaming webpages are created by Kalamazoo).  

They are planning have some live video during the tournament, and our current understanding is that it will only be for some of the courts when played at Kalamazoo College. Our first math will be played at Western Michigan and will probably not have any live video.

These guys, David Vilys '22 and Zach Hilty '22 
are almost sophomores already! 
Schedule of Play (PLEASE NOTE ALL TIMES LISTED IN EST)

Date                Time               Opponent                               Location

5/20                 430pm             Wesleyan, NCAA ¼ final       Kalamazoo, MI

5/21                 430pm             NCAA Semifinal                    Kalamazoo, MI

5/22                 3pm                 NCAA Final                           Kalamazoo, MI

5/23-5/25        TBD                NCAA Individuals                  Kalamazoo, MI

It’s time! Go Midd!

The Middlebury Men's Tennis Coaching Staff

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