The 21st-ranked Middlebury men's squash team fell to #22 MIT by a 5-4 tally on Friday evening in the Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center Squash Courts. The Panthers (5-6) return to action on Saturday when they play #16 Virginia at 3:00 p.m. in a match contested at Harvard.

In Friday's match with the Engineers (14-3), Middlebury jumped out to a 4-0 lead with victories at #6, #9, #3 and #5. John Epley defeated Robert Williamson by scores of 11-4, 11-7 and 12-10 in the sixth position, while William Kurth bested Avery Lamp in the ninth spot in four games (11-6, 11-6, 6-11, 11-7).

Jack Kagan put the Panthers up by three with a three-game triumph over Henry Martin at #3 (11-6, 13-11, 12-10), while Wiatt Hinton made it 4-0 in favor of the Panthers with an 11-9, 13-11, 12-10 victory against Jeffrey Hu in the fifth spot of the ladder.

The hosts rattled off five-consecutive wins during the remaining matches, including two in five games, for the 5-4 victory.