The 19th-ranked/third-seeded Middlebury men's tennis team saw its pursuit of a second consecutive NESCAC title end with a 4-2 loss to #6/second-seeded Bowdoin in Saturday's conference semifinals. Due to weather conditions, the matches were contested indoors at the Magic Lincer Tennis Club in Manchester, Connecticut.
HIGHLIGHTS
- The Panthers and Polar Bears jockeyed for early positioning in doubles action. Aden Dorros and Mick Tamas logged a 6-2 decision at #3 before the pairing of Hugh Hentschel and Julian Wu grabbed a 6-3 win in the second position.
- Reif Larsen and Thehan Wijemanne clinched the first point of the match in their 6-2 triumph during their top-flight match against Mark Kneiss and Jackson Codd.
- To commence singles, Andrew Yim logged a straight-set decision (6-2, 6-1) in the sixth slot that pushed the navy and white to a 2-0 advantage.
- Larsen and Cameron Zia went the distance at #4. Zia won a 6-1 opener before Larsen countered with a hard-fought 7-6 (7-4) victory to set up a third battle. The Polar Bear snatched momentum back in the third, cruising to a 6-1 decision to put Bowdoin on the board.
- The three-set trend continued in the top flight as Kneiss and Wu split the first two frames. Kneiss fought back and secured a 6-1 victory, knotting the match at 2-2.
- Kiran Garapati grabbed a 6-3 result during the opening set until Lewis rebounded with a 7-5 decision to send the battle to a decisive third. The players went back and forth before Garapati flipped a 7-5 win to put Bowdoin up 3-2.
- Catanzaro sealed the match for the Polar Bears, earning a 6-2, 6-3 victory in the fifth slot.
NOTES
- Wijemanne and Codd split the first two sets in their match at #3 before the match was called.
- Wu logged his 65th doubles triumph as a Panther.
- Saturday's match marked the 10th meeting between the programs in the NESCAC Tournament.
The Panthers await their NCAA Tournament fate when the field is announced on Monday, May 4 at 12:30 p.m.
