The fourth-seeded/#16 Middlebury men's squash team jumped ahead by a 4-2 score, but could not hold onto the lead as Colby rallied for a 5-4 victory in NESCAC Quarterfinal action on Saturday from Connecticut.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The Panthers grabbed the momentum out of the gate. Ronin Kaplan tallied a sweep from the ninth spot and Charlie Clifford rebounded from dropping his opening game for a 3-1 victory (4-11, 11-6, 11-7, 13-11) at the seventh slot for a 2-0 lead.
• Colby responded by earning four-game victories at #2 and #5, respectively, to cut the lead to 3-2. Middlebury's victory came from Theo Kogan, who gutted out a five-game triumph (12-10, 11-9, 8-11, 12-14, 11-8) that lasted just over an hour.
• Aditya Kothari continued his strong rookie campaign, tallying a five-game marathon triumph over Avery Rosenberg from the #8 slot to put the Panthers a point away from clinching the match.
• The Mules did not let up. Inwoo Lee (#1) and Timofey Radionov (#3) registered reverse sweeps in five games to send the match to a decisive final battle.
• Knotted at 4-4, the attention turned to the middle-of-the-ladder matchup between Gabe Feinstein and Carlos Zendejas at the fourth slot. The players split the opening two games before Zendejas grabbed a 13-11 triumph in the third to jump ahead, 2-1. Feinstein battled in the fourth but fell 11-9 for the final 5-4 tally. 

NOTES

• Kothari pushed his winning streak to three-consecutive matches.
• Colby and Middlebury matched up for the third time in the NESCAC Tournament.

The Panthers have two regular-season matches left, beginning with a Wednesday showdown against #11 Dartmouth from the Bostwick Family Squash Center at 4:00 p.m.