Stags stay perfect in SCIAC, blank #20 Cal Lu 9-0

The #1 ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Stags won their fifth straight SCIAC dual match of the season without losing a match, shutting out #20 Cal Lutheran on Friday afternoon at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center. Junior Nik Marino (San Diego, CA) returned to the Stags' lineup and picked up convincing wins at #3 singles and #3 doubles. Marino's singles win was the clincher for CMS.

The Stags' built up yet another intimidating lead with their sixth straight doubles sweep against a D3 team. Number two pair Skyler Butts (So. - Santa Ana, CA) and Neel Kotrappa (Sr. - La Verne, CA) won their fifteenth of sixteen encounters this spring. The duo hasn't lost more than three games in any of their past five matches. Marino and senior captain Zhenya Pereverzin (Clackamas, OR) were first off for the Stags at #3, closely followed by juniors Warren Wood (Del Mar, CA) and Joe Dorn (Washington D.C.) at #1, who remained undefeated against west region opponents with their 8-3 win.

In the most anticipated singles match of the afternoon, Wood faced another formidable #1 in Cal Lu's Moises Cardenas. Cardenas won the first set 6-3 with a two-break margin. After Wood broke in the first game of the second, the players exchanged two game streaks over the next four changes of sides. Wood then held to serve out the second set 6-4, and with the dual match clinched, began a match tie-break. At 5-all in the match tie-break, Cardenas twisted his ankle and took an injury timeout, but then managed to win the next two points for a 7-5 advantage. Wood dictated the next four points to earn him two match points with Cardenas serving at 7-9. Wood converted on his second match point for his seventh tie-break win this season.

CMS is now 19-1 overall and 5-0 in conference play. The Stags will face #13 Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday at 6:00 PM at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center.

#1 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (9) vs. #20 Cal Lutheran (0)
April 4, 2014 at Claremont, CA (Biszantz Family Tennis Center)

Doubles
1. Joe Dorn / Warren Wood (CMS) def. Alex Nichols / Connor Treacy (Cal Lu) 8-3
2. Neel Kotrappa / Skyler Butts (CMS) def. Moises Cardenas / Fergus Scott (Cal Lu) 8-0
3. Nikolas Marino / Zhenya Pereverzin  (CMS) def. Ian Slater / Jesse Knight (Cal Lu) 8-1

Singles
1. Warren Wood (CMS) def. Moises Cardenas (Cal Lu) 3-6, 6-4, (10-8)
2. Joe Dorn (CMS) def. Alex Nichols (Cal Lu) 7-5, 6-3
3. Nikolas Marino (CMS) def. Connor Treacy (Cal Lu) 6-0, 6-1
4. Skyler Butts (CMS) def. Sean Handley (Cal Lu) 6-2, 6-3
5. Daniel Morkovine (CMS) def. Ian Slater (Cal Lu) 6-3, 2-6, 6-1
6. Zhenya Pereverzin (CMS) def. Fergus Scott (Cal Lu) 6-1, 6-1

Order of completion
Doubles: 3, 2, 1
Singles: 6, 3, 4, 1, 2, 5