The #9 Middlebury women's tennis team has earned the second seed in the NESCAC Tournament and will take on seventh-seeded Colby in quarterfinal action on Friday at 1:00 p.m. at Amherst.
 
ABOUT MIDDLEBURY

• Middlebury is making its 22nd appearance in the conference tournament, having played in each championship since its inception.
• The Panthers are seeking the program's first NESCAC Title and have advanced to the championship match in each of the past six years.
• Middlebury finished the regular season with an 11-4 mark and a 9-1 record in conference play. The lone loss for the Panthers came against #3/top-seeded Wesleyan.
• The team enters the weekend riding a four-match unbeaten streak. 

PANTHERS TO WATCH

• Sahana Raman has played in the top spot in both singles and doubles all year. The Panther owns a 16-7 mark with Amy Delman, while going 4-2 with Nathalie van der Reis. In singles, Raman boasts a 7-3 NESCAC mark, and sits at 59 career wins heading into the weekend.
• Holding down the second spot in doubles has been Gena Huang and Claudia Miller. The tandem owns an 11-4 mark, with seven victories in conference play.
• The third slot has featured consistent action from van der Reis, who owns marks of 3-0 with Lulu Wu and 2-0 with Ananya Annapantula. 
• Wu has held down the #2 spot in singles action, boasting a 6-2 mark, while going unbeaten (4-0) in the fourth slot earlier in the season. Wu enters the weekend with a four-match unbeaten streak, including a thrilling three-set victory on Sunday.
• Miller has played primarily in the third slot, boasting an impressive 48-14 career record, including nine wins this season.
• In the fourth position, Huang owns a 6-3 mark, while going 8-2 overall in NESCAC action this spring.
• Delman enters the weekend riding an impressive seven-match winning streak. The Panther is 9-1 in conference play, and owns a 6-1 mark at #5.
• Several Panthers have played in the sixth slot throughout the season. Charlotte McCann is 4-0 in that position and enters the weekend with seven-consecutive singles victories. Also featuring at #6 is van der Reis with a 3-1 mark. 

ABOUT COLBY

• Colby is making its eighth appearance in the NESCAC Tournament and is seeking its first conference crown.
• The Mules qualified for the initial five tournaments, and recently reappeared for the 2022 and 2023 editions. 
• Colby claimed NESCAC wins over Connecticut College, Hamilton, Bates and Trinity this spring, while battling nationally-ranked Middlebury, Sewanee and Tufts to tight 5-4 losses.

MULES TO WATCH

• Holding down the top spot in both singles and doubles is Sam Riordan. The Mule has partnered with Sydney Landau (4-4) and Michaela Landry (3-4) in doubles action, with signature wins coming against Tufts and Middlebury this spring. In singles, Riordan owns a 10-5 mark, highlighted by triumphs against the top Cardinal and Panther individuals.
• When Landau and Landry are not paired with Riordan at the top of the doubles lineup, they have featured with Isabella Suk at #2. 
• The duo of Amelie Gal and Ellie Gershaw have consistently seen action in the third spot, claiming the most NESCAC wins at five.
• Landau has held down the second singles spot (7-4), while Gershaw has the most singles wins in a specific position of the lineup, mostly competing at #3 (9-2). 
• Jade Finestone and Suk have each played in the lower three positions of the lineup throughout the spring, while Landry owns a 6-1 record at #6. 

SERIES HISTORY

• Middlebury and Colby play for the 29th time on Friday. The Panthers recently claimed their 20th-straight win against the Mules.
• The teams squared off this past Sunday, with Middlebury edging Colby 5-4. 
• The programs have squared off in the last two NESCAC Quarterfinals, with the Panthers taking each of those by 5-0 scorelines. 

ABOUT THE COMPETITION

• Williams has won 10 conference crowns and is looking to make it back to the title match for the first time since 2018.
• Wesleyan is the reigning NESCAC Champion, having won the crown in four consecutive years. Three of those titles came against Middlebury, with the fourth occurring against Tufts during the COVID-19 season where not every team participated, including the Panthers.
• The Cardinals enter the weekend with an unbeaten 15-0 mark, including a 10-0 NESCAC regular-season record.
• Amherst is the only other squad to have claimed the title, trailing the Ephs by one trophy with nine. 
• Six of the eight teams in the tournament are nationally ranked, including #3 Wesleyan, #9 Middlebury, #10 Williams, #12 Amherst, #16 Tufts and #22 Bowdoin. 

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION

• The top eight teams in the conference will qualify for the NESCAC Women's Tennis Championship held at Amherst College (primary site), Friday – Sunday, May 3-5. Wesleyan University (secondary site) will host four quarterfinal matches on Friday, May 3. All matches will be played to decision. Following the conclusion of regular season matches, the quarterfinal match sites and times for each gender will be posted on the NESCAC website.
• Championship Central

The NESCAC Champion earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, with the rest of the at-large selections being revealed on Monday, May 6.