The Bostwick Family Squash Center was packed with spectators on Friday night, Jan. 9, as the Panthers introduced their starting lineup ahead of the match against Navy. Middlebury Men’s Squash entered the weekend as the 17th seed in the NCAA with a 2-2 record. They faced 15th-ranked Navy, 16th-ranked Franklin and Marshall College and 23rd-ranked Dickinson College.
With the goal of making the top-12 bracket at the College Squash Association (CSA) nationals in March, the triple-header would be a crucial test for the Panthers’ season.
“The mindset was to establish ourselves after the break. We wanted to prove that we were fit enough to play the triple-header and come strong throughout,” captain Caleb Boateng ’26 said.
Friday’s match against Navy was intense from the get-go. Nico Brown ’29 and Boateng secured wins, while the Navy team claimed victories at #9 and #2. Tied at 2–2, Navy gained momentum and recorded hard-fought wins in the first and fourth positions to establish a lead.
The Panthers responded with a win from Ronin Kaplan ’27, who swept his opponent at #8. Navy then put a Middlebury win out of reach with a four-game win in the third slot.
“We felt like we left something on the table there,” Gabe Feinstein ’29 said, reflecting on the Navy match. “We really let ourselves feel the pain of that loss, knowing that we didn’t want to feel that again.”
The Panthers had a short turnaround as they looked to rebound in Saturday’s CSA match of the week against Franklin and Marshall.
“As much as the match could have gone any way, we know things happen,” Boateng said. “And, you know, tomorrow’s a new day. And it’s another day to take down a giant, F&M, who we’ve lost to. We had to lock in for that.”
Middlebury came out firing on Saturday, with first-year Naum Lekovic ’29 sweeping his match at #9. After dropping the #2 spot, the Panthers took full control with a sweep from Boateng and a 3–1 victory from first-year Brown.
Feinstein entered his match at the top of the ladder with the Panthers up 3–1.
“Every single match, regardless of how much of an underdog I am, I’m still going to give it my all, and I know that if I can find a way to win, that’s really going to be valuable to the team. So when I went out onto the court, I just wanted to give it my all,” Feinstein said.
Feinstein quickly racked up 11–5 and 11–6 wins in the first two games before dropping the next two games 11–8 and 12–10. In the fifth, he held strong and secured a 12–10 win, putting the Panthers decisively in the lead, 4–1. Kian Kardestuncer ’26, Kaplan and Theo Kogan ’26 won their respective matches to officially secure the Panthers’ 7–2 victory.
In the final matchup of the weekend against Dickinson College on Sunday, Jan. 11, Middlebury dominated from the start. Except in the #1 game, the Panthers swept eight of nine matches to finish the weekend 2–1.
The Middlebury men’s squash program will go back into battle next weekend with another triple-header at home against Bowdoin, Bates and Colby, with all three squads currently ranked in the top 25.
“These three-match weekends are just really tough mentally. Last year, we lost to [Colby] 5–4, and it was insanely tight,” Brown said. “So I think that having that on Sunday after all those other matches will be motivation that keeps us going.”
To be sure, the Panthers will need all the motivation — and sheer endurance — they can muster next weekend to extend their now-winning record.
