M. tennis rolls over Crimson

BY JON COHEN

Heading into the ECAC tournament over the weekend, the men's tennis team knew that victories in the first two rounds would mean a highly anticipated matchup with top-seeded Harvard. "We expected to do well, but we didn't know how we stacked up against Harvard," David Goldman, BK '04, said. "They were considered the best team in the Ivy League."

Seeded fourth entering the ECAC Championship, the Bulldogs knocked off the archrival Crimson in the semifinals by a score of 4-3. Although Yale fell to Brown in the tournament finals, the weekend offered a glimpse into what could turn out to be the most successful season of Eli tennis in years.

Sparked by strong play throughout the lineup, the Bulldogs defeated Colgate in the first round of the ECAC Championships (6-1) and rolled over the University of Pennsylvania (5-2) in the quarterfinals. After coasting through the opening rounds, the Elis met Harvard in the semifinals on a high note.

MELISSA GARREN/YH Second-seed Brown broke Yale's winning streak, winning three straight singles and two of three doubles.

Winning two of three doubles matches, Yale took an early 1-0 lead on the Crimson. The No. 1 seeds, Steve Berke, MC '03, and Dustin West, BK '04, defeated their Harvard counterparts, Oliver Choo '03 and Jonathan Chu '05 (8-4). The third-seeded team of Goldman and Andrew Rosenfeld, ES '04, also pulled off a victory against Harvard's Chris Chiou '04 and Brian Wan '05 (8-6).

In singles, top-seed Berke and second-seed Goldman overcame early deficits to defeat their Crimson opponents, 5-7, 6-1, 7-5, and 1-6, 6-2, 6-1.

Yale then lost at the third, fifth, and sixth spots, but fourth-seed Ryan Murphy, SY '05, pulled out a dramatic match to propel Yale into the finals. Against the Crimson's Choo, Murphy won the first set 6-4, lost the second 5-7, and demolished Choo in the third 6-1, sealing the Bulldog victory.

"[Ryan's] is the one match that stands out in my mind," Johnny Lu, PC '05 said. "Against a junior with a lot of experience, he played well under pressure and showed that he had a lot of poise. In the third set, with Harvard fans watching, waiting to cheer on [Choo], Ryan won a string of 10 or 15 points in a row, and really took the crowd out of the match."

Riding high over their win over Harvard, however, the Bulldogs were destined for a downfall. Facing second-seeded Brown, Yale fell 4-0 in the ECAC finals. Losing two of the three doubles matches and three straight singles matches, the Bears captured the title before three of the singles matches had been completed.

"It was a little bit of a letdown to lose to Brown after defeating [the tournament's top seed]," Lu said. "I think we've shown, though, that we can do well in any tournament we play in and strike fear into other teams because of how well we did at ECACs." Other Bulldogs echoed Lu's air of confidence; most claim that success at the ECACs have raised team expectations.

After having defeated perhaps the Ivy League's best team, Yale has shown it has the potential to win the league. "The general feeling [on the team] is one of confidence," Murphy said. "We knew we had a good team. Now we know we can win the Ivies."

"We want to build on our success in the ECACs, especially on our win over Harvard. We didn't expect to beat [them], but at the same time, we expected everyone to be capable of doing what they did," Rosenfield added. "We lost two key players last year, but we have two freshmen who have shown they can step in right away."

Recognizing that they can now rely on multiple players for support, the Bulldogs have acquired a new sense of confidence. "Winning matches like these is a team effort," Goldman said. "If one person loses, he's going to step it up for the next time. We know that if we can beat Harvard, we can beat anyone else on our schedule in the spring."

Despite their success, the Elis realize that there is still room for improvement. "The guys who came back from last year know how to win," Rosenfield said. "Our only weakness may be that a couple of doubles teams were just put together. We're going to get a lot better in doubles. We threw a couple of teams together who should really improve."

The next important tournament for the Bulldogs is the ITA Regional Championships, which will be held in Princeton, N.J., from Fri., Oct. 26 to Tues., Oct. 30. Though individual Bulldogs hope to do well, their next team competition will not occur until the spring.

Coming off success at the ECAC Championships, the Bulldogs now realize their ability to dominate opponents when they play at the top of their game. "[Beating Harvard at ECAC's] was a real team effort," Murphy said. "Everyone contributed when they had to. Our team is very balanced. We just need to get on the court, practice, and work on our games so we can do well in the spring season."

"We're really excited about the potential that we have," Lu added. "There's a lot of unity on the team. Everyone clicks, and there are no real conflicts. We were satisfied about beating Harvard, but we know now that we can do even better."

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