Nikolai Parodi hits a drop shop. (photo credit: Alisha Alexander)
Nikolai Parodi hits a drop shop. (photo credit: Alisha Alexander)

No. 2 CMS Shuts Out Pair of Ranked Foes, Move to Stag-Hen Final

CLAREMONT, Calif. – The No. 2 Claremont-Mudd Scripps men's tennis team cruised their way through the first two rounds of the annual Stag-Hen Invitational. In the morning, the Stags took care of No. 32 Swarthmore 9-0 to advance to the semifinals where they topped the No. 5 Wesleyan Cardinals in a similarly convincing 9-0 victory. CMS will play No. 4 Bowdoin tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m. at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center in a re-match of the 2017 Stag-Hen title match.

Match One – No. 2 CMS defeats No. 32 Swarthmore 9-0

The Stags got out to an early 3-0 lead after doubles play and then earned a singles sweep with only the loss of one set. Junior Captain Julian Gordy (CMC) and sophomore Nikolai Parodi (CMC) built a 6-3 lead at No. 1 doubles, but yielded their service break in the eleventh game and had to settle for an 8-7(4) win. Parodi faced even more resistance in singles at the top spot. He fought back from a set and 4-2 down to force a second set tie-break. Parodi won the second set tie-break 7-1, and then won the decisive match tie-break for the Stags' ninth and final point.

Match Two – No. 2 CMS defeats No. 5 Wesleyan 9-0

The second match of the day for the Stags put them against the No. 5 Wesleyan Cardinals, who had defeated Trinity University by a 6-3 score in the quarters. CMS defeated Wesleyan twice in 2017, first in the Stag-Hen quarterfinals, and then again in the NCAA quarterfinals in Chattanooga, TN in May. The Stags once again played solid doubles at all three positions. CMS' No. 2 team of sophomore Oscar Burney (CMC) and freshman Jack Katzman (CMC) won for the eighth straight dual match this season. The duo hasn't yielded more than four games in any one of those matches. Burney earned his second singles win of the day at No. 3, which clinched the dual match for the Stags. Katzman moved to 8-0 at the No. 2 position with his 6-4, 6-1 win. Katzman trailed 4-2 in the first set before winning ten of the final eleven games of the match. Gordy also capped an impressive day by winning his second straight set match at No. 5. Gordy dropped a mere three games in four sets.

The Stags are looking for their eighth Stag-Hen Invitational Title. They defeated Bowdoin 5-4 in 2017, after erasing a 3-0 deficit. CMS has claimed four of the last five Stag-Hen titles outright, and shared the title with Emory in 2012.

For more information on the tournament visit the 2018 Stag-Hen Tournament Homepage.

#2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (9) vs. #32 Swarthmore (0)
March 12, 2018 at Claremont, CA (Biszantz Family Tennis Center) - Stag-Hen Invitational Quarterfinal

Doubles
1. Julian Gordy / Nikolai Parodi (CMS) def. Mark Fallati / Josh Powell (Swarthmore) 8-7(4)
2. Oscar Burney Jack Katzman (CMS) def. John Lathrop / Simon Vernier (Swarthmore) 8-2
3. Jake Berber / Daniel Park (CMS) def. Jiung Jung / Thibault Vernier (Swarthmore) 8-5

Singles
1. Nikolai Parodi (CMS) def. Mark Fallati (Swarthmore) 4-6, 7-6(1), (10-7)
2. Jack Katzman (CMS) def. Thibault Vernier (Swarthmore) 6-2, 6-0
3. Oscar Burney (CMS) def. Simon Vernier (Swarthmore) 6-3, 6-3
4. Daniel Park (CMS) def. Josh Powell (Swarthmore) 6-2, 6-1
5. Julian Gordy (CMS) def. John Lathrop (Swarthmore) 6-0, 6-0
6. Matthew Jacobs (CMS) def. Ari Cepelewicz (Swarthmore) 6-0, 6-0

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

#2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (9) vs. #5 Wesleyan (0)
March 12, 2018 at Claremont, CA (Biszantz Family Tennis Center) - Stag-Hen Invitational Semifinal

Doubles
1. Julian Gordy / Nikolai Parodi (CMS) def. Adrian Roji / Princeton Carter (Wesleyan) 8-6
2. Oscar Burney Jack Katzman (CMS) def. Win Smith / Jonathan Holtzman (Wesleyan) 8-1
3. Jake Berber / Daniel Park (CMS) def. Steven Chen / Andrew Finkelman (Wesleyan) 8-5

Singles
1. Nikolai Parodi (CMS) def. Steven Chen (Wesleyan) 6-2, 6-3
2. Jack Katzman (CMS) def. Andrew Finkelman (Wesleyan) 6-4, 6-1
3. Oscar Burney (CMS) def. Tiago Eusebio (Wesleyan) 6-3, 6-4
4. Daniel Park (CMS) def. Princeton Carter (Wesleyan) 6-4, 6-1
5. Julian Gordy (CMS) def. Jonathan Holtzman (Wesleyan) 6-3, 6-0
6. Matthew Jacobs (CMS) def. Adrian Roji (Wesleyan) 7-5, 6-3

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