Third-seeded Middlebury advanced to the NESCAC Semifinals with a 5-0 win Friday afternoon over sixth-seeded Bates (8-9). The three-day tournament is being hosted by Amherst and matches were played at the Amherst Tennis Courts. The Panthers (19-3) will take on second-seeded Williams at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Against the Bobcats, Middlebury secured a 3-0 advantage at the conclusion of the doubles matches. The Panthers scored the opening point when the tandem of Peter Martin and Timo van der Geest posted an 8-2 win over Bates' Duane Davis and Nick Glover at No. 3. In the top flight, Middlebury doubled its lead when Lubomir Cuba and Kyle Schlanger earned an 8-5 victory against Ben Rosen and Jacob Kauppila. At No. 2, the Panthers completed the sweep when William de Quant and Noah Farrell bested Josh Quijano and Josh Leiner by an 8-5 count.

During singles play, the Panthers were victorious at No. 3 and No. 6 to seal the match. In the third spot, de Quant defeated Leiner (6-1, 6-0), while van der Geest clinched the match at the bottom of the lineup against Jacob Eisenberg (6-0, 6-1).

The remaining four matches went unfinished with Middlebury winning the first set on each court. Cuba was up 6-2 and 3-1 at No. 1 against Rosen, while Farrell claimed the opening set 6-4 and led 2-1 in set number two against Quijano in the second flight. At No. 4, Schlanger earned the opening set 6-4 against Kauppila, while Nate Eazor won the first set 6-1 and trailed 3-2 in the second against Nick Glover at No. 5.