Stags Handle Sagehens, Claim 13th Consecutive Outright SCIAC Title

CLAREMONT, Calif. – The top-seeded Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men's tennis team claimed its 13th consecutive outright conference title with a 5-1 victory over No. 11 Pomona-Pitzer in the final of the SCIAC tournament on Saturday. CMS extended its conference win streak to 124 matches and enters the NCAA tournament with a record of 28-3 overall and 9-0 in SCIAC. NCAA selections will be made on Monday, with the first three rounds to begin on Friday.

The Stags yielded their first doubles loss in conference play on Saturday, but still took a 2-1 advantage into the singles. With the dual match tied at one-all, CMS' No. 1 team of Julian Gordy (CMC) and Nikolai Parodi (CMC) converted a service break at love for a 7-6 advantage. Parodi then served out the match for the duo's 12th straight win. Gordy returned in the singles to record his 18th win of the season in straight sets, which put the Stags up 3-1. The Sagehens stayed close on all remaining courts, until the dual match seemed to shift on the outcome of two tie-breaks. At No. 1 singles, Parodi had to serve twice, at 4-5 and 5-6 in the second set, just to stay in the match. His resounding 7-2 tie-break win to send the match to a third set was puntuated by a screaming backhand return winner on set point. At No. 3 singles, sophomore Oscar Burney had won the first set handily, but then trailed 1-4 and then 5-6 in the second set, even saving two set points on his serve in the 12th game of the second. After holding serve, Burney got ahead in the tie-break 3-1, then trailed 5-3, before winning the final four points to secure the win. 

With CMS now up 4-1 in matches, both Jack Katzman (CMC) and Avinash Vemuri (CMC) at Nos. 2 and 6 respectively, were closing in on victories. Katzman had led by a 6-1, 3-2, one service break margin, but yielded the last four games of the second set. Meanwhile, as Vemuri built a slower paced 6-3, 5-3 lead, Katzman raced out to a 5-2 advantage in the third set. For the second straight day in a match played to decision, Vemuri earned a straight set win to give CMS the win. It was Vemuri's 22nd win of the season, second only to Parodi's 24 singles victories for best among Stags starters.

#5 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (5) vs. Pomona-Pitzer (1)
May 5, 2018 at Claremont, CA (Biszantz Family Tennis Center) - SCIAC Tournament Final

Doubles
1. Julian Gordy / Nikolai Parodi (CMS) def. Jed Kronenberg / Joshua Gearou (PP) 8-6
2. Avery Bicks / Kalyan Chadalavada (PP) def. Oscar Burney /  Jack Katzman (CMS) 9-7
3. Robert Liu/Daniel Park (CMS) def. Marko Mandic / Octave Bellet (PP) 8-3

Singles
1. Nikolai Parodi (CMS) vs. Jed Kronenberg (PP) 3-6, 7-6(2), 3-2, unfinished
2. Jack Katzman (CMS) vs. Octave Bellet (PP) 6-1, 3-6, 5-2, unfinished
3. Oscar Burney (CMS) def. Joshua Gearou (PP) 6-1, 7-6(5)
4. Julian Gordy (CMS) def. Marko Mandic (PP) 6-2, 6-3
5. Daniel Park (CMS) vs. Sam Malech (PP) 5-7, 6-3, unfinished
6. Avinash Vemuri (CMS) def. Jacob Schoenherr (PP) 6-3, 6-3

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