Stags split with Georgetown and Penn to close out road trip
#2 CMS Stags Tennis concluded its east coast trip with a one day, four team tournament at the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday. CMS won their opening match again Georgetown 6-1, then lost by the same score to host Penn in the afternoon, giving the Stags a split against the Division I programs. CMS won four of five matches on their east coast trip.
Against both Georgetown and #61 Penn, the Stags played an experimental 5 singles, plus two doubles simultaneous format. All matches began at the same time, with both teams using nine players with no-ad scoring and service lets being played. The Stags took command of the dual match with Georgetown by winning closely contested first sets on six of the seven courts. Senior captain Warren Wood (Del Mar, CA) hit a thunderous ad-court ace at 4-all deuce, and then broke at love to win the first set at #1 singles. Sophomores Glenn Hull (Brookings, OR) and Max Macey (Wilton, CT) similarly needed one break margins to gain first set advantages at the #5 and #4 singles spots. Across the lineup, CMS looked stronger and more confident in second sets, with Wood getting the Stags up 1-0 in just over an hour. After a doubles loss at #2 event the score momentarily at one-all, Macey and Hull got straingt set wins to give CMS a 3-1 lead. First time doubles pair Joe Dorn (Sr. - Washington D.C.) and Daniel Morkovine (So. - San Carlos, CA) clinched the dual match win with a 6-4, 6-4 win at the top doubles position, before Nik Marino (Sr. Capt - San Diego, CA) and Skyler Butts (Jr. - Santa Ana, CA) won their 13th and 12th singles matches respectively at #3 and #2.
Playing in the afternoon match against host Penn, CMS were competing against their only nationally ranked Division I opponent of the season. The Quakers built early, decisive leads on five of the seven courts, with only Hull at #5 singles and the team of Dorn and Morkovine at #1 doubles winning first sets for the Stags. Hull went on to win impressively in straight sets, while Dorn and Morkovine held a 6-4, 4-2 lead and then held one match point returning at 4-5 deuce, before falling in a match tie-break in lieu of the third set.
CMS returns to Claremont this week for three key Division III contests. On Wednesday March 25, CMS faces west region rival #21 UC Santa Cruz in the Stags Against Cancer match at 4:00 PM. On Friday, March 27, CMS goes head-to-head with #3 Middlebury at 2:00 PM. Then on Saturday, March 28, CMS returns to SCIAC play by hosting #39 Whittier at 12 noon.
#2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (6) vs. Georgetown (1)
March 21, 2015 at Philadelphia, PA (Hecht Tennis Center - University of Pennsylvania)
Doubles
1. Joe Dorn / Daniel Morkovine (CMS) def. John Brosens / Alex Tropiano (Georgetown) 6-4, 6-4
2. Andrew Dottino / Jordan Portner (Georgetown) def. Bryan Mehall / Rohan Shankar (CMS) 6-4, 6-4
Singles
1. Warren Wood (CMS) def. Daniel Khanin (Georgetown) 6-4, 6-2
2. Skyler Butts (CMS) def. Marco Lam (Georgetown) 6-2, 6-4
3. Nikolas Marino (CMS) def. Peter Beatty (Georgetown) 6-4, 6-4
4. Max Macey (CMS) def. Jack Murphy (Georgetown) 6-4, 6-3
5. Glenn Hull (CMS) def. Mac Rechan (Georgetown) 6-4, 6-3
Order of completion
S1, D2, S4, S5, D1, S3, S2
#2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (1) vs. #61 Penn (6)
March 21, 2015 at Philadelphia, PA (Hecht Tennis Center - University of Pennsylvania)
Doubles
1. Austin Kaplan / Nicolai Westergaard (Penn) def. Joe Dorn / Daniel Morkovine (CMS) 4-6, 7-5, (10-7)
2. Thomas Spratt / Zach Lessen (Penn) def. Bryan Mehall / Rohan Shankar (CMS) 6-0, 6-1
Singles
1. Nicolas Podesta (Penn) def. Warren Wood (CMS) 6-2, 7-6(3)
2. Blaine Willenborg (Penn) def. Skyler Butts (CMS) 6-2, 6-4
3. Josh Pompan (Penn) def. Nikolas Marino (CMS) 6-0, 6-3
4. Matt Nardella (Penn) def. Max Macey (CMS) 6-4, 6-3
5. Glenn Hull (CMS) def. Marshall Sharp (Penn) 6-2, 6-2
Order of completion
D2, S5, S3, S4, S2, S1, D1