Final 2024-25 Season Wrap-Up

At the completion of another season, we have had a couple of weeks to reflect on our journey together. It was another special season that presented unique challenges, but also taught us how to be massively resilient and strong. Winning our conference tournament of course a huge highlight, but as anyone who has been a part of our program knows well it will be the memories and bonds that we forget created together that will carry us for a lifetime! We can also be immensely proud of the rise in our tennis as we began to peak more and more as a team at the right time. For example, we won 7 straight doubles points to finish our season! We look forward to building on our learnings from this season, welcoming our graduating seniors to our Middlebury Tennis alumni group, and continuing to create the magic that defines our Middlebury Tennis program. 

Loved this squad!

NCAAs

For the NCAA regional rounds, we headed to Baltimore, MD to compete in the section of the bracket hosted by Johns Hopkins. Upon our arrival, we were welcomed and supported by some of the family members and alumni who lived in the area, helping to put us at ease on the road! We kicked things off in the Round of 32 by sweeping a rising Allegheny team 4-0. The full box score can be found here. Next up, we had to face the hosts Johns Hopkins in what we knew would be a great battle of teams that were both playing good tennis especially toward the end of our seasons. As a team, we came out ready to rumble and battled to win an incredibly fun doubles point via a 6-2 win at #2 doubles (Hentschel/Kondamuri) followed by an epic 7-6(7) tiebreak win at #1 doubles (Laber/Wijemanne). From there, the next point we earned was a thrilling come-from behind win at #2 singles (Wu) who cruised to a 6-0 third set! Credit to Johns Hopkins who got the best of us in many of the singles positions, but we certainly forced them to battle hard and they played well. The full box score can be seen here. In fact, Johns Hopkins would have 4 team match points against the eventual DIII national team champs in the next round.   

The doubles pair of Hentschel/Kondamuri went on a tear at the end of our season.

NCAA Individuals

The final stop on our season’s journey was for Noah Laber to compete in the NCAA singles tournament and for Noah Laber and Thehan Wijemanne to pair up for the doubles. We ended up losing a tough match in doubles to CMS in the first round, but that did not stop Noah and Thehan from ending the year ranked top 5 nationally! Pretty impressive stuff from them throughout the year. On the singles side of the event, 

Thehan had an epic year both in doubles and singles too for the squad!

Noah's match day intensity was next level!

End of Year NCAA Ranking Achievements

- #7 National Ranking as a team (#2 regionally)

- #4 National Noah Laber singles (#2 regionally)

- #33 National Neel Epstein singles (#14 regionally)

- #34 National Julian Wu singles (#10 regionally)

- #4 National Laber/Wijemanne doubles (#2 regionally)

Neel with one of his classic fist pump moments!

Gratitude

A final expression of our utmost appreciation needs to go out to our players, support staff, alumni, and families! Special thanks to the hard work and dedication that Noah Laber and Neel Epstein displayed during their careers and cannot wait to stay connected with them as alumni! Shelby, thanks for being an incredible athletic trainer and taking care of our squad from start to finish. We would not have been able to compete as well without your support and efforts! Thanks to Ali Paquette, Dain McKee, Ben Blakely and all of Athletic Communications for keeping up with our stats, taking pictures and videos, and helping to capture many magic moments during our season. Thanks again to our guest strength coach Ryan Nosak, he's a Panther beast who has added a ton to our program and helps keep us fit, strong, and healthy. Last but of course not least by a long shot, thanks to our amazing team parents and families whose incredible support, cheering, taking us out to eat, providing snacks, traveling, and being there for our group helps make us feel like the most loved and supported team!

This team knew how to celebrate the fun moments! What a clinch it was at NESCACs!

Go Midd!

- Middlebury Tennis Coaching Staff

2025 NESCAC Champs: Third Conference Title in Four Years

Earning opportunities to compete together. This was a key theme for our team as we wrapped up regular season play and then hosted our NESCAC conference tournament. As we reached the phase of the year where you have to earn your ticket to postseason events and each round is win or go home, there exists a special motivation in that we want to do everything we can to literally create more opportunities to go out and compete together. There is nothing like the college team format in terms of bring together intensity, passion, and magic... created from taking on challenging opponents and testing ourselves to see how well we can play as a group. Having waded through some different forms of adversity, experienced ups and downs, our group displayed brilliant grit and determination en route to winning the 2025 NESCAC tournament and officially punched our ticket to NCAAs! I would hazard to guess we might be one of the only teams ever to win a conference tournament vanquishing three consecutive opponents that beat us earlier in the season! What a special run and the best part is, we get to keep competing together again soon!

Midd!

Last Three Regular Season Matches

We won two of our final three NESCAC regular season matches. We took a tight 4-3 loss to Williams where we battled hard and earned solid victories at #1 (Laber), #3 (Epstein), and #5 (Wijemanne), but did not have enough punch to get over the line and in addition took an injury that forced us to retire in one of our matches. The box score can be seen here. 

That being said, we felt like we dug deep and came away with a feeling that we had better tennis ahead of us and set our sights on proving that during the next weekend. Next up, was two final home regular season matches where the boys really shined! We took out Wesleyan 4-0 followed by Trinity (CT) 7-0! An exciting part of these two matches is that our doubles came out firing in both matches earning two wins at #1 doubles (Laber/Wijemanne), two wins at #2 doubles (Hentschel/Kondamuri) and one win at #3 doubles (Larsen/Epstein). We followed up our strong doubles play with some excellent showings in singles and could feel our growing confidence as a group at just the right time. Full box scores can be seen here and here.

Reif and Neel teaming up!

Wijemanne lining up to rip!

Senior and Alumni Weekend 

Special shout out to our seniors, families, and alumni who made our Wesleyan and Trinity home matches a truly special environment. The collective energy and support we felt, injected us with a boost of confidence and fire that carried us that weekend and sparked us to feel like we were getting ready to peak as we headed toward postseason play. Here is a great photo from the weekend!

Love the support from our Midd Alum Family!

NESCAC Quarterfinal (Midd beats Williams 4-0)

In the first stop on our payback tour, we faced off with Williams on our brand-new outdoor courts. Having lost to them in a nail-biter two weeks prior, we knew we had to come out firing and we did just that! We kicked off the match by earning some excellent doubles wins with #1 doubles starting the party (Wijemanne/Laber) followed by #2 doubles (Kondamuri/Larsen) clinching the doubles point with some electric energy! Third doubles remained unfinished but was on a great track as well. We then earned three hard fought straight set victories at #s 4-6 singles (Wijemanne, Hentschel, Larsen) to put the match to bed! We were nearing the finish line at some of the other matches as well, and it was a fun atmosphere to be a part of from start to finish. The full box score can be seen here.

Hentschel and Kondamuri on fire!

Laber amped!

NESCAC Semifinal (Midd beats Tufts 4-3)

Next stop on our revenge track we took on Tufts indoors in Nelson Arena due to rain. Tufts had an incredibly strong regular season, and we knew we would need to come out and play fearlessly to give us a chance and that we did! We secured the key doubles point beginning again with #1 doubles (Wijemanne/Laber) followed by #3 doubles (Epstein/Larsen) who fought off a furious comeback attempt. With growing confidence and momentum, we kept battling from the get-go in singles play. We needed three more points to get across the line, and knew there would be no easy matches. At #4 singles (Wijemanne) competed with exceptional poise winning 6-7, 6-2, 6-2 after clawing back from an early deficit to having had a couple of set points in the first set to then staying composed throughout to earn an excellent win! Next up with his own three set accomplishment at #3 singles (Epstein) won a thriller of a back-and-forth matchup winning 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 in true warrior like fashion! Finally, the stage ended up being set for #5 singles (Hentschel) to secure the clinching point for the second day in a row with a resounding 6-3, 6-2 victory where he played some nearly flawless tennis with all eyes on him at the end of the match! The full box score can be seen here. Click on the image below to see Hugh Hentschel serve up a massive ace to send our team to the conference title match!

NESCAC Final (Midd beats Bowdoin 4-1)

For the final stop on our avengers path, we matched up with Bowdoin. Our goal was to play free and to play with joy, and we were able to do just that which is not always easy coming off big wins the two days prior. Again doubles set the stage for us. Similar to the day before, we secured the massive doubles point with wins from #1 doubles (Wijemanne/Laber) followed by #3 doubles (Epstein/Larsen). Heading into singles play, we found ourselves in incredibly competitive first sets across the board. After dropping the first set at #6 singles, it was looking like Bowdoin might find some momentum. However, displaying our rising grit we won three hard fought first sets within a span of about five minutes at #1, 2 and 5 singles. All three of those courts then raced to leads in their seconds sets as well, starting to open a path to the title for us! First to get across in singles was #5 singles (Hentschel) who continued his impressive display of tennis in big moments moving our squad to two points away from the match. Next up, after weathering a comeback bid and having a couple of earlier match points, #1 singles (Laber) served out his match in impressive style to secure a straight set win inching us to one match away from the title. Demonstrating his ability to track and make his opponents cover every inch of the court, #2 singles (Julian Wu) clinched the conference title for the Panther squad outlasting his opponent in some epic rallies to earn a 4-1 NESCAC Championship Final! What a special and well-earned moment for our team! Us coaches could not be more thrilled for our players!

Juju secured the title clinch!

These seniors do it again, third time in four years!

NCAA Regional Rounds Up Next

For the NCAA regional rounds, we will travel as the highest seed in our region with play hosted at Johns Hopkins University. Our round of 32 match match will be on Saturday, May 10th! Amped Up! 

Go Midd!

Rising Through Conference Play: Enjoying the Battles

There is simply nothing like sharing a journey of a season as a part of Midd men’s tennis, through the ups, downs, and all the in between! We are sitting in the middle of a beautiful moment where we have had a many solid wins, some tough losses, and a consensus that the best is yet to come for this group! The daily excitement of figuring out how we can continue to grow in learn serves this group well, where we do not take ourselves too seriously and constantly aim to rise toward a future peak in our collective level! We provide this latest post to recap our past 6 matches and then highlight what is coming up next with only two more weekends of regular season play left!

Huddling!

Tufts (Midd ousted 6-1)

In our first match back from spring break, we headed into indoor play in an away match in Boston. Credit to Tufts for playing well, despite hard fought battles across the board they came away victorious in most spots. The Panthers did secure a solid win at #2 singles (Wu) in straight sets, and despite the result we reminded ourselves that facing tough tests on the road will allow us to rise and become stronger as a result. You can see the full box score here. 

Bates (Midd wins 6-1)

Bouncing right back after the Tufts match, we again had to play on a unique court surface on the road and we responded brilliantly! We secured solid victories at #1 (Laber/Wijemanne) and # 2 doubles (Epstein/Hentschel) to take the doubles point, and then immediately took that momentum into singles play where we found our way to 5 straight set victories! The full box score is here.

Panthers always sticking together!

Bowdoin (Midd ousted 3-4)

Again taking a bus up to Maine for another weekend of road NESCAC matches, we came out battling and playing better even if not finding our best just yet. We pushed Bowdoin to the brink of earning the doubles point with #1 doubles (Laber/Wijemanne) winning 7-5 and coming up just short in the other two slots. We did not back down however and again pushed Bowdoin to the brink securing wins at #1 (Laber), #3 (Epstein) and #5 (Wijemanne) singles, and lost two three-set fights as well. It was a fun match to be a part of despite coming out on the wrong side of the result, but took comfort in knowing that this match will build our collective motivation and force as we continue to seek our best collective tennis. The full box score can be seen here.

Colby (Midd wins 5-2)

On the road, NESCAC opponent, and unique tennis surface… nothing new! Colby played us tough and we fought incredibly well to earn a gritty 5-2 win that began with excellent doubles play sweeping all 3 slots including a 13-11 tiebreak win at #1 doubles (Laber/Wijemanne). #2 doubles (Epstein/Hentschel) and #3 doubles (Lewis/Larsen) did not take near as long fortunately! In singles play we earned a come from behind win at #1 singles (Laber) and excellent straight set victories at #2 (Wu), #3 (Epstein), and #5 (Hentschel)! The full box score can be seen here. 

With his singles and doubles wins over MIT,
Neel reached a career milestone of 150 combined singles/doubles wins.

Conn (Midd wins 7-0)

In this match, weather pushed us indoors in the morning and we came out firing on all cylinders and really showed the depth of our program as well. We swept doubles play including a 6-0 win by our freshmen at #3 doubles (Huet/Larsen). We carried momentum well throughout singles with both freshmen also earning straight set singles win along with our four non-freshmen singles players in this one! Full box score can be seen here.

MIT (Midd wins 4-3)

We knew coming into this match MIT was a particularly talented group that would test our skills. In what turned out to be our first match at our new outdoor facility, we came up big earning a hard-fought win. In doubles, we played some of our best tennis and won handily by scores of 6-2, 6-4 and 6-0 at #1 (Laber/Wijemanne), #2 (Epstein/Hentschel), and #3 (Larsen/Lewis) respectively. We knew that singles would nonetheless not come easily. At the bookends of the lineup, doubles partners Laber (#1 singles) won 6-1, 6-3 against a very strong opponent and Wijemanne (#6 singles) won 6-1, 6-1 to push us to one match away. Senior captain Neel Epstein (#3 singles) fully closed the door with a 7-6(1), 6-4 triumph to secure the win before MIT could get any closer. The full box score can be seen here.

Noah Laber stretching out for a backhand.

Two More NESCAC Regular Season Weekends

Next up on our journey is an away match versus Williams on Saturday, April 20th followed by home matches versus Wesleyan and Trinity (CT) in our final regular season matches. Our full schedule can be seen here. 

Go Midd!

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.

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!

The 2025 Journey Getting Ready to Take Off

With our first practices around the corner, we are fired up and building our enthusiasm for our spring season ahead. Our first dual matches begin with a doubleheader on March 1st in Middlebury! Lots of work to build and prepare, but excited for what is to come! We begin the year ranked #5 in the ITA pre-season national poll, and cannot wait see where we can go this year. Our squad is a beautiful combination of experience, youth, and a willingness to improve and grow. In this blog post we spotlight our freshmen class, share our Spring 2025 dual match schedule, and share our collective excitement for what is ahead!

Can't wait to circle it up for our dual matches, first ones on March 1st!

We have been working incredibly hard and it is always a special experience to see our veteran players demonstrate their leadership and growth as they continue to put in work during our developmental season. Each of our Panthers has been locking in to aspects of their game that will help them to become stronger and more well-balanced team members. Another key shout out the coaching staff wants highlight is that our players really stepped up during our community service project in December where we partnered with the HOPE foundation to provide holiday gifts to families in need in Addison County. Our players had a blast and gathered a huge number of toys and needed items this holiday season!

Freshmen Spotlights 

Sidney Huet, representing the only one-handed backhand to our squad this year!

Sidney Huet:

• Hometown: Gstaad, Switzerland
• Siblings: Three younger sisters (Nora, Sveva, and Giulia)
• Favorite Food: Sushi
• Favorite Hobby Outside of Tennis: Skiing
• Pets: 1 Dog (Bo)
• Favorite Pro Tennis Player: Roger Federer and Carlos Alcaraz
• Best Part About Being in Vermont: Living the American life
• Favorite Thing About Middlebury College So Far: Cohesive team culture within the tennis team and school

Reif, connecting on a backhand at the Middlebury Invite.

Reif Larsen:

• Hometown: Portland, Oregon 
• Siblings: Younger sister (Sabrina)
• Favorite Food: Sushi
• Favorite Hobby Outside of Tennis: Skiing.
• Pets: 2 Cats (Champs and Dune)
• Favorite Pro Tennis Player: Novak Djokovic
• Best Part About Being in Vermont: The fall-season trees
• Favorite Thing About Middlebury College So Far: The team and skiing culture.

2025 Spring Schedule 

Check out our finalized 2025 Spring Schedule below. We loaded up a challenging schedule to really test ourselves and provide as many opportunities as possible to grow and build our resilience and strength during the phases of the season. We will play some of the toughest competition in DIII, as well as some challenging matches against non-DIII opponents. See our schedule graphic below, and you can also click here to always have the latest updates on our spring schedule.

Alumni Match Weekend and Senior Celebration (April 26th and 27th)

Alumni match weekend will take place April 26-27, when we host Wesleyan on Saturday and Trinity(CT) on Sunday. We will plan to host a get together with both our seniors, team members, families, and alumni this weekend! Please mark your calendars and we will send some more details as it gets closer.

Thanks for reading along and stay tuned for more updates! Go Midd!

- The Middlebury Men’s Tennis Coaching Staff