Middlebury, VT – The Ephs saw their NESCAC Tournament run come to an end on Friday afternoon with a 4–0 loss to No. 5 seed Middlebury in the conference quarterfinals.
Middlebury started strong in doubles, taking Courts 1 and 2 to secure the opening point. On Court 3,
Jack Ling and
Diego Marin were trailing 4–3 when the doubles point was clinched.
In singles, the Panthers carried that momentum into the lower courts, earning straight-set wins at positions 4, 5, and 6 to close out the match. Play was suspended once the fourth point was clinched. At the top of the lineup,
Nicholas Chen was leading 6–4, 6–6 on Court 1, and
Simon Volkema had just leveled his match at 1–6, 6–3, 4–4 on Court 3.
Shawn Berdia was also battling late in the second set on Court 2 before his match was called.
Eph head coach
Dan Greenberg reflected after the match, saying: "Middlebury earned it today. They played a clean match, and we didn't capitalize on the opportunities we created. We've made progress this season, but we know there's still more in the tank. Hopefully we get the chance to keep competing in the postseason."
The Ephs will await word on a potential NCAA at-large bid, with selections expected to be announced Monday.
Doubles:
- Wijemanne/Laber (MIDD) def. Chen/Berdia (WIL) 6-2
- Hentschel/Kondamuri (MIDD) def. Chong/Volkema (WIL) 6-4
- Larsen/Epstein (MIDD) led Marin/Ling (WIL) 4-3 unf.
Singles:
- Chen (WIL) led Laber (MIDD) 6-4, 6-6 unf.
- Wu (MIDD) led Berdia (WIL) 6-3, 5-3 unf.
- Volkema (WIL) vs. Epstein (MIDD) 1-6, 6-3, 4-4 unf.
- Wijemanne (MIDD) def. Ling (WIL) 6-2, 6-1
- Hentschel (MIDD) def. Marin (WIL) 7-5, 6-2
- Larsen (MIDD) def. Chong (WIL) 6-3, 6-4
