Middlebury Invite 2023 Recap

What a way to kick things off! The Middlebury Invite featured six other competitive DIII programs, and the Panthers really came to play. Across the six total flights (4 singles draws and 2 doubles draws), and we had Panthers make a run to the finals in 4 of 6 flights. Additionally indicating our impressive depth was that all nine of our competitors in this event posted a win! We knocked out both the #1 and #2 seed in the A Flight Doubles draw, knocked out the #1 seed in the B Flight singles draw, and won the singles A Flight! Pretty solid showing all around, but certainly still a lot to learn and grow from. Not how we start the year that means the most, but now we have increased clarity and determination to dial in our collective games to keep rising.

Joy always a key theme in our program!

Middlebury Invitational 2023 Highlights

• Julian Wu played eight matches across two days, winning the A Flight Singles Draw and making a run to the finals of the B Flight Doubles Draw partnering with Noah Lewis.

• Noah Lewis and Nathan Jackson both made deep runs in the B Flight Singles, with Noah making it to the semis and Nathan making it to the finals after dispatching the #1-seed in his semifinal win.

• Freshmen Thehan Wijemanne and Nikky Kondamuri both achieved some excellent doubles wins in the back draw brackets pairing with Neel Epstein and Nathan Jackson respectively.

• Joe Mairs made a wonderful run to the C Flight Singles final and took out the top-seeded doubles team in the A Flight pairing with Hugh Hentschel.

Joe Mairs and Hugh Hentschel talking strategy on a changeover!

• Neel Epstein paired with freshmen Thehan Wijemanne to knock out the #2 seeded doubles team in the A flight. 

• Max Kim, Hugh Hentschel, and Neel Epstein also each posted solid singles win in their respective flights.

Thehan gearing up to serve with partner Neel Epstein at the net.

Fun Fact

We have been giving out the same trophies at the Midd Invite for over two decades!

Julian Wu with his trophy picture after conquering the A Singles Flight.

Upcoming Fall Schedule

Date           Time        Event                          Location

9/29-10/1   All Day    ITA Regionals                Brunswick, ME

10/7-8        All Day    Skidmore Invitational    Saratoga Springs, NY

Go Midd!

Fall Season 2023: Panthers Arriving Back to Campus!

Let’s go! Exciting times as the US Open is entering the back half of the tournament and our Panthers are returning to campus to begin the new school year. Excited for a great fall season as we begin our new journey! This summer, our team put in an incredible amount of work and not only pursued their respective career paths taking on internships and other jobs, they continued to build their tennis games and competed in many tournaments across the country and even internationally.

These two captains, Robby and Andrew, will be rejoining us in the Spring. 

Our returning players arrive back on September 5th, except for three players who will return in the spring including Andrew Mueller, Robby Ward, and Aidan Harris. We will miss the presence of these three, but we know they will be hard at work as well and will demonstrate leadership from afar until rejoin us!  

The Panther roster for the 2023-2024 season is comprised of a balanced 7 upperclassmen, 3 sophomore, and 3 freshmen. Coach Andrew Thomson enters his 7th season at Middlebury as a coach and Tristan Kaye enters his 2nd season at Middlebury. We cannot wait to get started and have felt a strong sense of motivation in this group to aim toward the top of the mountain after coming so close during our last NCAA run! We look forward to posting more frequent updates on our blog throughout this season as we get back to competition as team. 

2023-24 Team Roster

• Upperclassmen (spring only): Andrew Mueller, Aidan Harris, Robby Ward
• Upperclassmen (fall and spring): Neel Epstein, Max Kim, Noah Laber, Joe Mairs 
• Sophomores: Hugh Hentschel, Nathan Jackson, Julian Wu
• Freshmen: Nikky Kondamuri, Noah Lewis, Thehan Wijemanne
• Coaching Staff: Andrew Thomson and Tristan Kaye

New Panthers

Our newest Panthers (from left to right): Thehan, Nikky, and Noah!

One of the most fun parts of kicking off a new year is getting to know our newest team members and integrating them into our cohesive and supportive group. We have again set our sights high and want to go after some special goals this year, and one thing is certainly clear, it will take a lot of hard work and enjoying the process each step of the way if we want to give ourselves the best possible chance to success.

Our fall tournament schedule is listed below and includes hosting one event and traveling to two others. We will take on some great competition!

2023 Fall Schedule 

Date     Time         School                             Location

9/16-17     All Day Middlebury Invitational     Middlebury, VT

9/29-10/1    All Day ITA Regionals                     Brunswick, ME

10/7-8     All Day Skidmore Invitational     Saratogoa Spring, NY

Some new touchups on the Proctor courts having them look very fresh!

Fun Fact

Our Panther men have continued to crush it in the classroom, with 100% of our roster earning ITA Academic All-American status last year! That’s the way!

Go Midd!

The Middlebury Men’s Tennis Coaching Staff