Stags claim 11th straight SCIAC title, defeat #10 Pomona-Pitzer 6-3
#2 CMS Stags Tennis won its 11th consecutive conference title, defeating #10 Pomona-Pitzer 6-3 in the SCIAC tournament championship match Sunday at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center. With the victory, CMS extends it's unbeaten conference streak to 105 matches and earns the SCIAC's automatic qualification bid into the NCAA tournament.
CMS avoided a rare D3 doubles sweep by winning a tie-break at #3, as junior Glenn Hull (Brookings, OR) and senior Bryan Mehall (Snowmass Village, CO) stayed perfect in four matches together. Each team broke serve twice in the match at #3, with the final break coming with Hull serving for the match at 7-5. The Stags third pair got out to an early 4-1 lead in the tie-break, and then held on for the 7-4 win.
Trailing 2-1 after the doubles, CMS was counting on a repeat of it's April 1 regular season perfromance with the Sagehens in which they won five of six singles matches. Hull and senior Captain Skyler Butts (Santa Ana, CA) quickly got the match heading in the Stags' direction with comfortable straight set wins at #2 and #1 singles.
Ahead 3-2 in matches, CMS had won first sets at #5 and #6, but lost first sets at #3 and #4. Junior Max Macey (Wilton, CT) trailed 6-2, and was tied at 3-all in the second set before running off nine straight games to put the Stags ahead 4-2. Patrick Wildman (So. - Cincinnati, OH) then got the clinching win at #5 with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 decision. CMS won three of four three-set matches on the afternoon, and are now 16-2 on the season in three-set matches.
CMS will hear on Monday whether they have been selected to host the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament, scheduled for next Friday through Sunday, May 13-15. CMS enters the tournament as defending national champions, with a record of 25-4 overall and a perfect 10-0 in SCIAC.
#2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (6) vs. #10 Pomona-Pitzer (3)
May 8, 2016 at Claremont, CA (Biszantz Family Tennis Center) SCIAC Tournament Championship Match
Doubles
1. Jonathan Kim / Graham Maassen (PP) def. Skyler Butts / Daniel Morkovine (CMS) 8-5
2. Antony Bello / Spencer Simonides (PP) def. Julian Gordy / Oliver Seifert (CMS) 8-2
3. Glenn Hull / Bryan Mehall (CMS) def. Sam Gearou / Josh Gearou (PP) 9-8(4)
Singles
1. Skyler Butts (CMS) def. Graham Maassen (PP) 6-3, 6-1
2. Glenn Hull (CMS) def. Jon Kim (PP) 6-2, 6-1
3. Daniel Morkovine (CMS) def. Josh Kim (PP) 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3
4. Max Macey (CMS) def. Sam Malech (PP) 2-6, 6-3, 6-0
5. Patrick Wildman (CMS) def. Antony Bello (PP) 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
6. Marco Mandic (PP) def. Julian Gordy (CMS) 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-4
Order of completion
Doubles: 2, 1, 3
Singles: 2, 1, 4, 5, 6, 3