The eighth-ranked Middlebury men's tennis team closed out the regular-season portion of its schedule on Sunday with an 8-1 victory over Colby. Prior to the contest, the Panthers honored seniors Robby Ward, Andrew Mueller, Joe Mairs, Noah Laber, Aidan Harris and Maximus Kim.
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• The hosts secured all three doubles points in quick succession. The #1 duo of Neel Epstein and Ward cruised 8-1 over their opponents, while the #2 tandem of Hugh Hentschel and Thehan Wijemanne followed with an 8-3 triumph.
• Moments later, the team of Harris and Julian Wu eased to an 8-3 victory at #3 for a 3-0 Middlebury lead.
• During singles action, the Panthers tallied the fourth and fifth points one after the other. Harris recorded a 6-2, 6-2 victory at #5, while Epstein clinched the match with a straight-set triumph (6-3, 6-1) in the fourth slot.
• The Mules earned their point with a 6-3, 6-1 decision at #2.
• Noah Lewis increased the Middlebury advantage to five (6-1) with a 6-4, 6-1 win in the sixth spot.
• The last two points were both claimed by the Panthers in straight sets. Laber battled his way to a 6-3, 6-4 victory at #1, while Ward outlasted his opponent in a second-set tiebreaker in the third spot with a 6-3, 7-6 (5) win for the final 8-1 score.

NOTES 

• Epstein picked up his 14th-straight singles victory on Sunday, with all but one coming in straight sets. He also went a perfect 9-0 during NESCAC matches this spring.
• Harris ran his winning streak to seven as an individual, improving to 14-2 overall.
• Wu claimed his 20th doubles win of the season.  
• The programs squared off for the 14th time with Middlebury winning each contest. 
• The Panthers have been victorious in each of their last seven matches, all coming against NESCAC foes.

Middlebury returns to competition next weekend when it takes part in the NESCAC Tournament. The seedings and matchups will be announced in the upcoming days by the conference office.