Trinity wins 10th straight title, Panthers finish 24th

Author: Matt Ferrer

Put another check on the Middlebury men's squash team's "to-do" list.

This past weekend the Panthers competed in the National tournament for the first time ever as a varsity program. And although they finished the weekend with a losing record, the experience of competing as a varsity team was invaluable.

Fifty-one teams from across the country entered the event, including all the NESCAC schools, all the Ivy League schools and schools like Stanford and UVA. Ranked 21st in the nation coming in, Middlebury was grouped in the Third Division with Tufts, Wesleyan, Hamilton, Denison, Northeastern, Stanford and St. Lawrence.

Having accumulated a combined team record of 2-4 against those teams (not having played Stanford) during the regular season, the men had their work cut out for them.

Looking for revenge after an 8-1 loss to Hamilton only two weeks ago, the men's team came out hungry. Victories from Gordon McMorris '08.5, Micah Wood '10 and co-captain Will Carroll '07.5 showed Middlebury's mettle.

However, 20th-ranked Hamilton proved to be too much as they battled their way to a 6-3 victory. Despite the loss, Coach John Illig said, "we played very well," and hinted that there was reason to be optimistic for the rest of the weekend.

Hoping to ride that wave of optimism, the men took to the courts against NESCAC rival Wesleyan the next day. Having already handed the Cardinals a 7-2 loss earlier this season, the Panthers were confident they would come away with another crushing victory. And, paced once again by victories from Wood and McMorris, with additional wins by Elliot Jia '10 and Jesse Davidson '08, Middlebury appeared in good position to continue its dominance. However, confidence may have given way to arrogance as the men ended up falling 5-4.

"We were very uninspired during the middle match," said Illig, "and thus we didn't play as well, which was disappointing."

So, with one match left on the weekend, the men their toughest opponent yet. Ranked 19th in the nation, Denison had already eked out a tight 5-4 victory over Middlebury in January.

With its top four players each losing in three games, the Panthers looked to the bottom half of their roster to provide a much-needed spark. Led by Carroll in the five-spot, Middlebury rattled off four victories from the five-nine players.

Wood, playing in the seven-spot, completed his impressive weekend with yet another victory to finish his first National tournament with an unblemished individual record of 3-0. Other victories from Davidson and William Piekos '11 got the Panthers close but weren't enough as Denison once again pulled out a 5-4 victory.

Although a record of 0-3 on the weekend was disappointing for the Panthers, Illig was proud of his team. "We learned a lot from this past weekend, and we learned what it takes to succeed at nationals," he said. "None of the teams let up, there, and everyone comes at you hard. All in all, it was a fantastic year. Our sites are set high for next season."

And with the return of Wood, who finished 14-7 on the season, Piekos, and the Panthers' four best players J.P. Sardi '09, Brian Cady '11, McMorris and Jia, Coach Illig and the rest of the team have all the reason to be looking forward to building upon their overall 11-13 record.