Panthers Wrap Up Fall 2021 Competition In A Big Way

It was a busy October for Middlebury Men’s Tennis, and our young and hungry group demonstrated some of their best tennis of the fall season! We want to take a moment to give a shout out to our senior captains, who have established a great tone for our program this season as we look to take advantage of every competitive opportunity to improve our skills and sharpen our competitive edges. Zach Hilty, Stan Morris, and David Vilys have each stepped up to help guide our group toward a path that will allow our players to really explore how fast and far we can push our tennis level as group. With the hunger and tenacity of the younger classes behind, them our group will be ready for when the coaching staff must take a step back during the winter season. However, before then, we have guest coach Morgan Shepherd in the house who will work with each of our players on an individual level and help us to establish clarity for individual developmental plans during the winter.

Stan Morris competing in Rome, GA on his way to winning an individual ITA National Title!!!

Panther Classic

In this year’s Panther Classic, we hosted two Division I programs in Bryant and Colgate in Middlebury. We knew the level of play would be high and our group came out ready to rumble. Over the two-day event, the Panthers went 13-0 in doubles matches and 17-8 in singles play! Among many notable results, freshman Neel Epstein, sophomore Noah Laber, and all three seniors Zach Hilty, Stan Morris, and David Vilys went undefeated in both singles and doubles play! On Sunday in the final match of the tournament, sophomore Max Kim won a thriller after splitting the first two sets and capturing the super tiebreaker with teammates cheering full force from the sidelines! A full recap of results can be found here. 

Seniors Zach Hilty and David Vilys paired well and helped
the Panthers go 13-0 in doubles at the Panther Classic!

ITA Oracle Cup

In Rome, GA, we had one singles player and one doubles team competing in a draw consisting of 16 of the top DIII players/doubles teams in the nation who won or made it to the finals of their respective regional ITA tournaments. There are no easy matches at such an event as all players have already proven their level just to get to play at this event. Despite stiff competition, the Panthers brought their game in full force going a combined 6-1 during the event.

The tournament photographer did not spend enough time on Midd's courts,
but did capture this sweet swing of an Aidan Harris backhand return!

In doubles, Aidan Harris and Noah Laber won 2 of 3 matches. They won a super tiebreaker in the first round over a team that had won the West ITA Regional and found their best tennis when it mattered most. In the next round, we feel in the quarterfinal match but then bounced back to secure a straight sets victory in a compass draw format ending the tournament with yet another win! Aidan and Noah have already qualified as doubles All-Americans and will be a force to be reckoned with come springtime. 

In singles, Stan brought his game to Rome in full force putting together an incredibly impressive run winning the whole darn thing! On day 1 of the event, Stan won his first match in straight sets but then found himself down a set, 1-3, love-40 in his next match. Finding a way to dig deep and fight through a tough stretch on a hot and humid day, Stan fought his way back 7-5 in the third set battling through leg cramps and his hand cramping up as well. It was a gutsy performance where Stan demonstrated his desire to win and how badly he wanted to continue his run. 

We are lucky coaches getting work with each of our Panther Beasts on court!

After doing everything to rehydrate his body, Stan was able to re-up his level and found himself winning in straight sets in the semifinals to set up a rematch in the final against the player he lost to during the ITA regional event. This time, Stan came out victorious again coming from behind winning the title match 2-6, 6-3, 6-1. Stan again found his best tennis during the biggest moments and played some courageous tennis throughout the final to best his run to the finals in 2019. Stan is only the second player in Middlebury Men’s Tennis history to achieve this result and we will be adding his name to the list of individual national champions on our banner in Nelson Arena! Way to go Stan! Full results for both singles and doubles can be found here.

Stan was all smiles after winning the whole thing!

Wesleyan Invitational

With three of our players in GA, the rest of the Panther squad traveled to Connecticut to compete in the Wesleyan Invitational. Across two days, we got in a ton of singles and doubles match play against great competition, and we continued to impress. Highlights included semifinal runs for Joe Maris in singles, as well as semifinal runs for Joe Mairs/Robby Ward and Neel Epstein/Zach Hilty in doubles! Demonstrating our depth, every Panther who participated got at least a win in either singles or doubles. Full results for the event can be found here.

The group was treated to an outdoor team dinner by the parents who attended the
event - nothing more fun than spending time together as a team!

As always, thanks for all the love and support from you and the rest of our Middlebury Tennis Family. Looking forward to seeing and hearing from many of you soon!

Go Midd!

Coach Thomson and Coach Hansen

Panthers Shine at 2021 ITA Regional and Midd Invite

Congrats to our newest Doubles All-Americans Aidan Harris and Noah Laber!

Middlebury Invite 2021 Highlights
The 2021 Middlebury Invitational was the perfect way for our program to kick off our fall season and get our players into competition mode. Overall, we saw some great stretches of tennis up and down the board from our group and got important feedback that only a competitive atmosphere can provide as to the areas where each of our players can continue to grow and explore their potential. Our deepest runs across the six flights came as finalists in the A and B doubles flights and semifinalists in the A and B singles flights.

The Panthers looking good and always hanging together and supporting
while competing at our annual Midd Invite. 

On the doubles side of the ball, Stan Morris and Robby Ward paired well and won three matches against great competition to make the finals of the A flight doubles before falling to one of the top ranked doubles team in the nation in a hard-fought final match. Similarly, Neel Epstein and Zach Hilty showed great energy and fight making a nice run to the finals of the B flight doubles. Aidan Harris and Noah Laber picked up a win in the A flight doubles as well. In singles play, the Panthers picked up six more wins including semifinal runs by Noah Laber (A flight) and Zihao Yuan (B flight). Stan and Joe also picked up wins in their respective flights before falling to the eventual champions in their draws. 

It was particularly enjoyable to see our Panthers back in action and to see the hunger of our young group as we completed our first fall event. Full tournament results can be found by clicking here.

ITA Regional 2021 Highlights

What a tournament for the Panthers against the strongest players in the New England Region! Everyone who was able to compete (4 singles players and 4 doubles teams) displayed some great tennis and the depth and strength of our team was on display in both the singles and doubles draws. Next, we provide a quick summary of our best doubles and singles results.

David Vilys/Joe Mairs

David and Joe took the tournament by storm earning an 8-7(4) first round win over a talented MIT team before then pushing the top-seeded doubles team to a 7-8(13) loss. The positive energy and big serve and volley momentum they displayed gave them multiple match points (also saved multiple match points down themselves). Their fire and enthusiasm helped inspire their teammates to keep pushing throughout the event.

Neel Epstein/Zach Hilty

Neel and Zach kicked things off with a resounding 8-1 win over Western New England. Building on their success from the Middlebury Invite, they played some special tennis earning an 8-7(6) victory over another talented and 9th seeded MIT team. Zach’s topspin lobs and spike volleys under pressure as well as Neel’s clutch serving and constant pressure at the net pushed them over the top in a great come from behind win (they were down 7-4). Their run was then cut short by the eventual doubles finalists in the following round.

Photo taken on changeover at the Midd Invite.
Bobby H coaching up the Hilty/Epstein doubles combo!

Robby Ward

As Robby has only recently been getting back to full strength, his tennis took full flight over the weekend as his competitive spirt and fierce determination took over. Robby began the event with a decisive victory over an opponent from Colby-Sawyer. Next, he faced off against the top seed in the draw. Highlighted by Robby’s fearless play, both coaches and all his teammates watched our team’s last match of the day as Robby put on an incredible performance. He won 6-4 in the third set over Noah Lilienthal from Wesleyan with his big serving, attacking groundstrokes, and big finishes at the net. The next day, Robby was not done just yet as he earned another impressive straight set victory over a very strong player from Brandeis before falling in the quarterfinals. We know as Robby continues to regain full health, he will be even more dangerous moving forward. Great work Robby!

Stan Morris

Stan followed up his incredible run at this event last year, by again earning himself a trip the finals! Stan kicked things off beating two tough opponents in straight sets from Babson and Bowdoin respectively. There were no easy draws in this tournament and Stan came ready with great focus and competitiveness to hit the ground running. On Saturday, Stan earned two more straight set victories over seeded opponents, first from Bates and then from Amherst. In both matches, Stan used his experience and knowledge of his own game to help him come out ahead against two other strong players. In the semifinals on Sunday, Stan began to play some of his best tennis in the biggest moments winning 6-4, 6-4 against an opponent from Bowdoin including playing a rock-solid game to break serve to close out the match. Although Stan lost the final to a Williams player who was on a tear, he also earned himself his second consecutive trip to Rome, GA where we already cannot wait to see him play against the other finalists/champions form the other regions across the country! To make things even more fun, we next will share that one of our doubles teams will also be joining Stan in Rome, GA! Congrats on a great run for Stan!

Stan getting ready to serve in his quarterfinal match.

Aidan Harris/Noah Laber

These two won a combined three singles matched including each posting a come from behind win in three sets after dropping a first set. That being said, the major highlight for Aidan and Noah was WINNING THE WHOLE THING in the doubles event. They had no easy matches across their five victories throughout the tournament and it was a true pleasure for the coaching staff to watch their games and doubles acumen grow and thrive more and more as they made their way through the draw. They kicked things off with an 8-4 win against Amherst on Friday. On Saturday, they first navigated an incredible 14-12 tiebreak win in a hard-fought match against Colby including saving multiple match points down. From there, these two did not look back. They then beat a team from Tufts they had lost to just a week earlier at the Midd Invite 8-6 demonstrating some impressive serving and volley work at the net. On Sunday, they played a sizzling level of tennis taking out the top-seeded team from Brandeis 8-5 putting on one of their best performances of the tournament. Then in the finals, they kept their momentum rolling against a very talented and battle tested Williams team earning a 6-2, 7-6(6) win. Noah play included incredible shot making from all areas of the court included defensive lobs, sick angles, steady returns, and big moves at the net. Aidan demonstrated rock solid serving, nasty first volleys and pickups, steady returns, as well as some extra special closes at the net when it mattered most. Even more fun, these two also earned a trip to Rome, GA to play the ITA Oracle Cup national event to compete against the winners/finalists of the other regions across the country. And if that were not enough, winning the whole thing cements these two as first time All-American doubles players! Well done Aidan and Noah and let’s keep the fun (and hard work) rolling!

 

Click here for a complete view of the tournament results.

Harris and Laber strategizing on the changeover!

Upcoming Tournament Schedule

10/2-3: Panther Classic

• The Panther Classic begins this Saturday at home in Middlebury, VT! The tournament will feature two division one opponents (Colgate and Bryant), and we will play 3 singles and 3 doubles matches for each player across Saturday and Sunday.  

10/14-16: ITA Oracle Cup

10/16-17: Wesleyan Invitation in Middletown, CT

Very best wishes, 

The Middlebury Men’s Tennis Coaching Staff

Fall Season 2021: Panthers Arriving Back to Campus!

The wait is over and we could not be more thrilled to bring you an update on all things Panther tennis! Fall is a beautiful time of year to be in Vermont, but this year we are particularly excited to get back to competitive action! It has been too long and we are fired up to say the least. Our group has continued to work hard on and off the courts, but there is something special and motivating about getting back to having four fall tournaments on our calendar. 

Even the ivy on the buildings starts
to change color this time of year! 
Phot cred: @middleburycollege

Our players get back to campus on September 5th, except junior Andrew Mueller who will be studying abroad in Spain this semester (staying closely connected with us from afar). We cannot wait to have our group back together and to get to work! 

The Panther roster for the 2021-2022 season is comprised of 3 Seniors, 3 Juniors, 4 Sophomores, and 2 Freshmen. Coaches Bob Hansen and Andrew Thomson enter their fifth season working together. Our first practice will take place on September 7th and we are stoked! We look forward to posting more updates as we compete throughout the fall season. 

2021-22 Team Roster

Seniors: Zach Hilty, Stan Morris, and David Vilys

Juniors: Aidan Harris, Andrew Mueller, and Robby Ward

Sophomores: Max Kim, Noah Laber, Joe Maris, and Zihao Yuan

Freshmen: Neel Epstein and Max Platt

Coaching Staff: Andrew Thomson and Bob Hansen

As a coaching staff, we are thrilled to get to know our new team members and to help them to hit the ground running. They will join an incredibly cohesive and supportive group. We know it is going to take an extraordinary effort for our team to achieve our biggest goals, so we will need to ensure everyone is putting in the required effort and work to get where we want to go. 

Our fall tournament schedule includes hosting two home events and traveling to two away tournaments. We will take on some of the fiercest competition in DIII, as well as DI opponents at our Panther Classic.  

2021 Fall Schedule (click here for link to our official schedule)

Two Fun Facts

• Our men have continued to crush it in the classroom, with the team and 100% of our roster earning ITA Academic All-American status last year! That a way!
• The 2020-21 Panther squad was unable to play a traditional competitive schedule due to the pandemic, but our group excelled competing in many UTR, ITA, and men’s open events across the county.

In Case You Missed It

Check out this feature article on our very own Robby Ward (click here)!

Let’s get it started! Go Midd!

The Middlebury Men’s Tennis Coaching Staff

Appreciating Our Graduating Seniors and Summer 2021

We send this update today filled with pride for celebrating our senior class of 2021 and the wonderful impact they have left on our program. We are also turning our focus toward ensuring our program utilizes the summer months well, especially as all signs point to a full return to normal modes of competition starting in the fall! Having been unable to compete as a team across the past two spring semesters has certainly served to sharpen our appetite and we already cannot wait!

Celebrating the Class of 2021

What an incredible group of young men! Adam, Nate, and Thorne officially graduated on Saturday, and it has been our pleasure as a coaching staff to work with each of these incredible student-athletes. Each of them will graduate with academic honors and has consistently put in excellent work in the classroom. On the tennis court, their accomplishments have been steady and strong as well. In their freshmen year, they immediately brought a sense of youth and talent to our group that rounded out an experienced group and their efforts helped push us to win the NCAA title. What a great way to kick off a career! As sophomores, they won the NESCAC title and made a run to the NCAA final four, enjoying the thrills that come with positioning ourselves deep in the postseason. Due to the pandemic that has influenced all of us in so many ways, it turned out these would be the final two spring seasons for this group. Despite the frustrations and uncertainty prompted by the pandemic, our senior group has not complained, made the most of difficult situations, and found a way to assert themselves as strong leaders of our program when it was needed most! 

Adam, Nate, and Thorne are all incredibly likable young men who earned the respect of their teammates and coaches by bring a sense of positivity and joy day in and day out. Each of them has always been willing to take on tasks for the betterment of the team and put the team needs above their own. We are going to miss watching their tennis skills on a daily basis as well from Thorne closing the net like a monster in 2-up 2-back drills, Nate’s always reliable cross-court forehand angles and passing shots, and the incredible power and technically perfect swing of Adam’s aptly named fearhand! However, their impact on our program will be sustained for years to come and we cannot wait to keep these three involved as newly minted alumni. The way our three senior captains help to keep everyone connected, even when we were not together on campus this spring was truly special. It is clear our group maintained one of the most important ingredients of Middlebury Tennis – creating a team culture that produces lifelong bonds and friendships! Congratulations again to Adam, Nate, and Thorne - we are beyond thrilled to see what these three will accomplish in their post-Middlebury careers! 

The "fearhand" in action! Few players have a skill as special as Guo's '21 forehand. 

Eazor '21 probably whizzing a crosscourt angle passing shot by a helpless volleyer - too Eazy.

Gregory '21 pictured on the right with Sutton '19 were one of the most storied 2up 2back combos in program history with Gregory '21 always fearless at net. Team nickname of Corne (Cole + Thorne). 

Recap of Spring 2021

To provide a brief recap, it was a particularly unique spring semester where we had one player on campus and twelve players studying remotely and training and playing off-campus. Given the circumstances, we were impressed by our group’s sustained commitment and accomplishments. We were able to schedule three scrimmage matches for Zihao Yuan ’24 who was our only player on campus against NESCAC opponents toward the end of the semester and he also played a few fun “challenge” matches where he competed against Coach Thomson (youth prevailed in these matchups!). Our off-campus players trained consistently throughout the semester, meeting weekly on Zoom as a team, dialing in their own practices and fitness, and competing in many UTR events to get some great competition in as well. The Panthers won multiple doubles titles during the semester which was a highlight for us coaches to follow along with! Not all college and universities had the same approach to athletics during the pandemic this semester (some DIII schools were able to compete in postseason play), and it is serving to build extra fuel and fire for us to hit it hard next year! 

Mairs '24 and Ward '24 after teaming up to win a doubles tournament in SoCal. 

Middlebury Tennis Plans for Summer 2021

Now that we enter the summer, we are thrilled that many activities will be returning to more pre-pandemic normal status. Recruiting is being allowed at more and more events for us coaches and we look forward to traveling to some of our mainstay tournaments and showcases throughout the summer. We also anticipate the college will begin to allow some visitors on campus, and it will be wonderful to be able to welcome prospective players on campus and show off what a “hidden” gem Middlebury College is in person instead of through video calls and virtual tours! We will also be using the summer to dial in plans for our typical competitive events in the fall, including our annual Middlebury Invitational tournament which we currently have penciled in for the week of September 18th! Thrilling to start pointing toward our first fall tournament, which helps give each day the extra spark of motivation for getting after it on the courts!

Thank you so much to everyone in our Middlebury Family and we truly appreciate having so many incredibly supportive and patient people encouraging us as the Panthers await our return to typical competition! As always, we love hearing from you and hope to see many of you back on campus to watch some tennis as soon as we are cleared to host fans again (or watching us ball out on the livestream)!

Very best wishes,

The Middlebury Men’s Tennis Coaching Staff

Panther Tennis: Spring Semester Update

With our spring semester underway and the weather starting to thaw out some of the snow, it is time for another update of Middlebury Men’s Tennis! Even though we are far from a typical semester, we are thrilled to report that our group has already making the most of another unique semester!

Remote Spring Tennis

When deciding a few months ago where they would spend their spring semester, our group was faced with substantial uncertainty about the future of what would be possible this semester relative to campus, classes, and tennis. Some of our group chose to study remotely, others took a gap semester, and we have one player back on campus as well. Despite continued unique and challenging circumstances, we remain closely connected with each and every player on the team. Even better, each Panther is attacking their spring semester and making the most of it both academically and on the tennis courts. 

Recently, we have had the pleasure of following two doubles teams make a run to the finals and then win a tournament in Southern California. In fact, each of our the panthers who have competed in a tournament over the past few weeks have all earned at least one win. Most importantly, it has been wonderful to see our group use their creativity and passion to find competitive environments to continue to push their tennis games. We look forward to watching our group continue to grow their competitive sharpness as they find more ways to compete.

Panthers on Campus

Here in Middlebury, Zihao Yuan ’24 is back into our rhythm of six day a week training with a blend of individual work with the coaches, fitness, and even some yoga too. His consistent hard work and dedication serves him well and the coaching staff is excited to be able to keep up with our in person coaching skills as well. We are optimistic that if the spring continues to go well from a Covid perspective, we might be able to find Zihao scrimmage opportunities against conference competition!

Zihao Yuan '24 dialing in his volley technique
in Nelson Arena!

NESCAC Play This Spring

Recently, the NESCAC college presidents made an announcement about spring sports (read the announcement here). There will likely be some limited dual match play during the end of the spring semester. Click here to read more.

While we do not have enough players to compete in dual matches this spring, we remain committed to staying focused on the overall missions of our program which includes helping our group to develop their tennis level while simultaneously getting them closer to their career goals as well. Of course, we always strive to ensure our group enjoys every aspect of their collegiate experience as well! As a coaching staff, we could not be prouder of the way our group has navigated difficult obstacles and decisions through the pandemic. They remain committed, optimistic, and as passionate as ever about what we are all about.

Sending our very best wishes to everyone in our Middlebury Tennis Family,

The Middlebury Men’s Tennis Coaching Staff

J-Term 2021 Update and Freshmen Spotlights

Panther tennis fans! Looking forward to sharing another update about our program as we continue to navigate an uncertain and unprecedented path for this academic year. Middlebury is fully remote for J-term this year and classes begin this week! The coaching staff will be teaching our PE classes over zoom, so instead of focusing on tennis or pickleball, we have elected to provide a class that shares some of the mental skills work we do with our team to promote performance (and hopefully supports well-being beyond the court too) with all students. In this post, we will highlight our freshmen class so you can get to know our youngest group better and will wrap up by providing an update on the upcoming spring semester.

Freshmen Spotlights: Get to Know the Class of 2024
We have loved getting to know our freshmen class and they are already well integrated into the team and making a big impact on all levels of what we do. That being said, there is always more to learn about our group and who would have thought that 3 out of 4 of them would pick sushi as their favorite food! We cannot wait to watch this group continue to grow and thrive!

Max Kim

Hometown: Hillsborough, NJ

Siblings: Nicole Kim (older sister)

Favorite food: Sushi

Favorite hobby outside of tennis: Trying new foods

Pets: Beanie (toy goldendoodle)

Favorite pro tennis player: Daniil Medvedev

Best part about being in Vermont: Being surrounded by nature

Favorite thing about Middlebury College so far: Making new friends

Noah Laber

Hometown: Ventura, California

Siblings: 5 (Benjamin, Caroline, Kaikoura, Jackson, Micah)

Favorite Food: Sushi

Favorite Hobby Outside of Tennis: Ping Pong

Pets: Dogs (Oliver, Nala) Cats (Violet, Coco)

Favorite Pro Tennis Player: Rafael Nadal

Best Part About Being in Vermont: Different weather (Snow)

Favorite Thing About Middlebury College So Far: Friends on the Tennis Team

Joe Mairs

Hometown: Edina, Minnesota

Siblings: Younger brother (sophomore in high school)

Favorite Food: Sushi

Favorite Hobby Outside of Tennis: Guitar

Pets: 2 dogs (bernese mountain dogs) and 2 cats (norwegian forest cats)

Favorite Pro Tennis Player: Roger Federer

Best Part About Being in Vermont: All the different seasons

Favorite Thing About Middlebury College So Far: The people at Middlebury are very welcoming and supportive.

Zihao Yuan

Hometown: Guangzhou, China

Siblings: Older brother Jeff in Australia

Favorite Food: Steak

Favorite Hobby Outside of Tennis: Reading

Pets: Dudu (Chow Chow)

Favorite Pro Tennis Player: Roger Federer

Best Part About Being in Vermont: The weather is cool during the summer.

Favorite Thing About Middlebury College So Far: I can explore many possibilities.

Spring Semester Outlook

Middlebury has yet to announce a formal decision about spring athletics, but we are anticipating that there is a high likelihood that we will not be back to competition as usual just yet. No part of missing competitive seasons is easy, but we remain thankful for the opportunities we still do have to work together as a team. We are sure cheering for the vaccine distribution process to speed up though! Given the current outlook, our group has been busy working on backup plans and adapting to the circumstances as well as possible. One option that the majority of our team may choose is to study remotely (or take a gap semester) and live together somewhere warm where they will be able to train as a team and play tournaments if conditions allow. While it would be strange not to have our whole team back on campus as we had in the fall, we are pleased that our players want to find opportunities to compete again to continue their development and test the skills we have been building. More importantly, as a coaching staff we loved seeing how our group worked together and prioritized options that allowed them to be with their teammates. As always, we know our team will stay committed to doing what it takes to keeping their tennis on an upward trajectory!

Very best wishes, 

The Middlebury Men’s Tennis Coaching Staff