The third-ranked Panther men's tennis team played its first two spring matches of the season, picking up a pair of 9-0 home NESCAC victories against #22 Bates and Hamilton. The morning's match was played indoors in the Duke Nelson Recreation Center, while the match against the Continentals went outside to the Proctor Tennis Courts. Middlebury returns to action next Saturday at home against Wesleyan at 10:00 a.m.
During the morning match against Bates (2-4, 0-1), the doubles tandem of William de Quant and Timo van der Geest started things off notching the team's first point with an 8-2 victory at No. 3 over Josh Leiner and Josh Quijano. The No. 2 flight of Palmer Campbell and Hamid Derbani won 8-6 over Pat Ordway and Fergus Scott, while the top doubles team of Ari Smolyar and Noah Farrell edged Chris Ellis and Ben Rosen, 8-5.
In singles action, de Quant claimed the team's fourth point at No. 4 with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Brent Feldman, while Campbell clinched the match at No. 3 with a 6-4, 6-2 win against Scott. Smolyar picked up a win at No. 2 by 6-0, 6-4 scores against Ellis, while Farrell needed a super breaker to get by Rosen in the top spot (6-0, 3-6, 13-11). The Panthers' eighth and ninth points came from Derbani at No. 5 (6-1, 6-2) over Ordway and van der Geest in the sixth spot against Quijano (6-1, 6-1).
Later in the day against Hamilton (1-1, 0-1), the Panthers swept the doubles matches as the team of Smolyar and Farrell won by an 8-0 score in the No. 1 flight. At No. 3, de Quant and van der Geest remained perfect for the day with an 8-2 win, while Campbell and Derbani posted an 8-5 triumph at No. 2.
The Panthers didn't drop a set during singles play with the Continentals, mixing the lineup around from the first match. Cole Sutton was victorious at No. 6 (6-1, 6-1), while Kyle Schlanger won his match for the Panthers at No. 4 by the same score. Derbani moved up to the No. 2 spot and earned the straight-set victory (6-3, 6-2), while Campbell tallied a 6-1, 6-2 triumph in the top spot. The final two wins were recorded by van der Geest by scores of 6-2, 6-0 at No. 3 and Peter Martin at No. 5 (6-2, 6-4).
