The 18th-ranked Middlebury men's squash team has secured the fourth seed for the upcoming NESCAC Tournament. The Panthers begin their journey for the program's first conference title when they battle fifth-seeded/#17 Colby on Saturday, February 8 at 10:00 a.m. in quarterfinal action. Top-seeded/#4 Trinity serves as the host for all rounds of the tournament.

ABOUT MIDDLEBURY

• Middlebury currently sits at 9-5 overall with three regular-season matches remaining.
• The squad opened its campaign with victories in seven of the initial eight matches with the lone loss coming to Trinity.
• The Panthers have appeared in all 18 editions of the NESCAC Tournament since the inaugural one in 2007.
• Middlebury has tallied 11 semifinals appearances with the most recent coming in 2022.

PANTHERS TO WATCH

• Nathan Feinstein has played at #1 all season, tallying three triumphs.
• Aditya Kothari has earned a team-best 11 victories, with eight coming from the eighth position.
• Sitting right behind Kothari in the win column are Charlie Clifford (9-3) and Gabe Feinstein (9-5). Clifford most recently earned his 20th-career triumph with a four-game victory against Amherst last Saturday.
• The middle of the Panther ladder has been held down by Caleb Boateng (7-7) and Theo Kogan (5-5). Each have tallied five victories from the #5 and #6 slots, respectively. 
• Kian Kardestuncer owns a 7-7 combined mark playing in the second and third slots. He is also tied with Alexis Ballo for the most individual triumphs on the squad with 30.
• In his second season, David Zhao is undefeated at 5-0, with four victories from the ninth spot.

ABOUT COLBY

• The Mules hold a 6-4 record and have five regular season matches remaining.
• Colby is 4-3 in conference action with three of those victories coming in the last four.
• The program has made each of the previous 18 NESCAC Tournaments.
• Colby reached the semifinals last season before falling 9-0 to Trinity.

MULES TO WATCH

• Inwoo Lee and Seif Ashraf have been near the top of the ladder all season long. The duo has combined for a 14-4 record with Lee tallying a victory in five of the last seven matches.
• In the third slot, Carlos Zendejas sports a 7-1 mark with his lone loss coming in a four-game battle against Gabe Feinstein.
• Syed Kashef and Timo Radionov each have six victories on the season, withKashef triumphing in three of the last four matches.

SERIES HISTORY

• Middlebury and Colby have played each other 20 times with the Panthers holding a 15-5 edge in the all-time series.
• Both teams met earlier this season in Maine with the Mules squeaking out a 5-4 triumph.
• The programs have met twice in the NESCAC Tournament. Colby grabbed a 6-3 victory in the inaugural edition in 2007, while Middlebury swept the Mules 9-0 in the 2017 quarterfinals. 

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS

• Trinity has claimed the top seed for this season's championship. The Bantams have won all 17 NESCAC Championships.
• Williams earned the second seed for the third-straight campaign and will look to make the championship match for the 14th time.
• Third-seeded Tufts seeks to advance to the title tilt for the second-straight season.

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION