Wednesday, March 26, 2025

The Panthers (6-3) Take A Couple Of Lumps on Spring Break But End The Trip On The Rise

It is often difficult to fully describe how the tradition of heading to the west coast for spring break for Middlebury Men’s tennis has become something that everyone in our program looks forward to and thrives in. Traveling together, sharing food from tacos to Sichuan cuisine, and taking on tough opponents in the sunshine after coming out of the colder weather in VT creates a special atmosphere for our team that allows us to identify who we are as a group, exposes things we need to work on, and provides us with rewarding memories and great triumphs as well. This year we took on five nationally ranked opponents in a one-week span and took some tough hits early in the trip, before rebounding with a couple of stellar performances to finish the trip stronger than we began results-wise. As a program, we often expect to win and expect to play well nearly every match. The fact is, in sports as competitive as college tennis, this is a fun yet challenging aspect of Middlebury Men’s Tennis rich tradition and one that we relish. This year we are already using our early stumbles to create more growth and development that will make us even stronger when it matters most as the season evolves!

The squad was all smiles after our match vs Grinnell!

 Babson (Midd lost 5-2)

Despite doing everything we could to prepare well for our first outdoor and first match on the road, we got punched in the mouth quickly. Babson came out firing at us from the start and after losing the doubles point, we lost all 6 first sets in singles. Nevertheless, our squad did not give up easily and we were able to claw our way back to two singles win at the #1 (Wu) and #2 (Laber) singles spots. Although it was not enough to secure a team win, our group came together, addressed ways we needed to be better, and began to ready ourselves for having to play the #1 ranked team in the nation next. The Babson box score can be seen here.

Noah locked in.

CMS (Midd lost 4-3)

In a gutsy performance by our team, we rebounded well to play improved tennis up and down our ladder just two days after our first defeat. While we could not quite push this match over the top for a team win, we pulled together and competed better to earn ourselves the feeling that we can go toe-to-toe with any team in the country. This match was highlighted by key victories at #1 doubles (Wijemanne/Laber) 6-3 and close losses 4-6 and 6-7 at #2 and #3 doubles. In singles play, we won at #2 singles (Laber) in straight sets and at #3 (Epstein) and #6 (Wijemanne) singles in awesome three set battles! The full box score vs CMS can be seen here.

Thehan focused and intense!

Pomona-Pitzer (Midd lost 5-2)

Still trying to find our winning ways, playing a young and talented Pomona team on their home courts would turn out to be no easy task. In trying to steady ourselves from the past two matches, we fired ourselves up well for doubles and won the doubles point via a 6-1 victory at #2 doubles (Epstein/Hentschel) and a gutsy 7-6 (7) victory at #1 doubles (Wijemanne/Laber)! Starting out matches with better doubles performances is going to be critical as we move forward in the year, and this was a great note to build on in this match. Unfortunately in singles play, Pomona came out firing and we were not quite at our best sharpness. We dropped a couple of hard fought three set battles at #4 (Lewis) and #5 (Hentschel) singles, as well as secured a straight set victory at #6 singles (Wijemanne). The full box score for our match against PP can be seen here.

#3 Doubles (Juju and Lewi) in action!

Grinnell (Midd won 7-0)

Bouncing back with a rock solid team performance up and down the lineup, we began to get our squad back on a winning track in this one. Excellent wins at #1 doubles (Wijemanne/Laber) and #2 doubles (Wu/Lewis) were a great way to kick things off followed by six straight set singles win! Two highlights included standout matches at #5 singles (Larsen) who beat a player he had faced in his junior tennis days and #6 singles (Kondamuri) who both executed their strategies well and demonstrated the depth of our squad. The full box score vs Grinnell can be seen here

Lewi keeping his eye on the ball!

Redlands (Midd won 6-1)

Most years, we have faced off against a tough and high-energy Redlands team on our spring break trips which always makes for an electric matchup. This day was no different. Looking to cap our trip off well, we were able to put together one of our best overall team performances of the year so far versus a dangerous Redlands squad on their home courts. We set the tone in doubles play with #3 doubles (Lewis/Wu) earned a 6-2 win, #2 doubles (Epstein/Hentschel) getting across the line next with a 6-4 win, and #1 doubles (Laber/Wijemanne) wrapping up a doubles sweep with a 7-5 victory. We knew that we had to keep pushing our momentum into singles play as there would be no easy matches, and we were able to do exactly that. We captured the match by earning convincing straight set wins at the top three singles positions (Laber, Wu, and Epstein) who all were able to hold their standard of play high from start to finish. At the #4 through #6 singles spots, all three went the distance into third set action! We were able to secure two of the three matchups, winning at #4 singles (Lewis) and #6 singles (Wijemanne) to highlight a resilient and strong effort to finish up our spring break play. Let’s go! The full box score for the Redlands match can be seen here.

Sweet photo of Neel going to work as our match shifted into a night match!


Upcoming Schedule

Our next five matches will feature NESCAC opponents, beginning with away matches at Tufts on Saturday at 2pm EST followed by heading to play at Bates on Sunday at 2pm EST. Let’s go Midd!

Hugh pumping it up!

Panther Alumni Match on April 26th

For any alumni that have not already received our emails, contact athomson@middlebury.edu for all the details.


Wednesday, March 12, 2025

Panthers Head In To Spring Break After a 4-0 Start!

Incredibly fun to have started the year, and even more pleased that we were able to secure four out of four dual match wins so over the past two weekends before we get ready to travel to SoCal for spring break in a couple of days! Our triumphs included wins over a D-II opponent and three wins over nationally ranked teams including Hamilton (#34), RPI (#21), and Amherst (#13). Our team has highlighted our depth, ability to strike from any position, and the camaraderie that has always been a crucial factor in our teams success across the decades. One of the most fun parts of our start, is that we have gathered invaluable feedback about what is going well and what skills we need to hone and sharpen as we move forward into spring break with lots of exciting matches ahead! Here’s a review of our start, followed by our upcoming schedule.



The squad fired up!

RPI (Midd wins 5-2)

Kicking off our season with a strong opponent, the doubles was intensely contested in this one. Paced by a strong wins at #3 doubles (Larsen/Wu) and #2 doubles (Hentschel/Wijemanne), the Panthers came away with the doubles point heading into singles play. As we began to battle on the singles courts, we earned 4 of 6 hard fought singles wins, highlighted by straight set victories at #2 (Laber), #4 (Lewis), and #5 (Hentschel) singles slots. See the full box score here.

Wu/Lewis looking focused!

Saint Michael’s College (Midd wins 7-0)

During our double-header day kickoff, the Panthers came out swinging versus our DII opponent, without having much down time between matches. We came out charging in doubles play and never looked back in this one. Across many great highlights, our two freshman shined as both secured straight set victories at #4 singles (Larsen) and #6 singles (Huet). See the full box score here.

Wijemanne dialed in at the net!

Hamilton College (Midd wins 7-0)

In our first NESCAC battle, the Panthers came out fired up and never looked back. We took the momentum from the doubles, where we battled to a fun-filled tiebreak victory at #2 doubles (Wijemanne/Hentschel) to earn ourselves the doubles point with both sides watching and cheering. From there, the Panthers took all six singles matches in straight set style, playing to our own high standards across the board. Two specific highlights were at #1 singles (Wu) earning a solid straight set win and #6 singles (Kondamuri) also battling his way to a straight set win. See the full box score here.

Hentschel/Wijemanne return ready!

Amherst (Midd wins 5-2)

Anytime we take on a talented opponent such as Amherst, we know we need to be prepared for a good battle. The match was an exciting one, and this day it would be our singles that captured the momentum and took us to victory. After losing the doubles point, we earned a nice come-from behind victory at #1 doubles (Laber/Epstein) that gave our squad some nice confident before heading out to singles after losing the doubles point. Across #1 (Wu), #2 (Laber), #4 (Lewis), and #6 (Wijemanne) singles, the first wave on our four courts, we won all four first sets and really turned the tide of the match. Amherst did not stop fighting, but we kept pushing to the finishing line. After his teammates in the first wave of matches got us out to a 3-1 match lead with many stand out performances, it was #1 singles (Wu) who secured the clinching point winning a decisive 6-1 third set! The full box score can be seen here.

Classic Lewis fist pump, let's go!

Spring Break

Next up on our journey is our spring break trip to SoCal, which is always a highlight both on the courts and off. As we transition to more outdoor matches and play a slate of challenging opponents throughout the week, it will be a great test and way to push our games to grow to new heights. Beyond the matches, traveling together and sharing the bonds that often become fully forged on the road will continue to make this year’s journey a unique and special one. Check out our Spring Break Schedule and live scoring and live streaming on our schedule/results page here.

Go Midd!