Liu Falls in NCAA Singles Competition as CMS Men's Tennis Season Concludes

ORLANDO, Fla. - Senior Robert Liu tried to bounce back from an illness which forced him to retire in the third set of the NCAA Quarterfinals against Tufts on Monday by entering the NCAA Division III Men's Tennis Singles Championship this weekend, but he wasn't able to get back into form and fell in two sets to Charley Force of Swarthmore (7-5, 6-1) on Friday afternoon.

Heading into the Orlando trip, Liu was ranked fifth nationally in singles and had the potential to make a run at the title. His singles record on the year was 22-3, and two of his losses came to Stan Morris of Middlebury (one in the ITA Cup national semifinals in the fall and one in a dual in March), who was in the other half of the bracket, while his third came against Division I USC in January.

However, Liu's fourth loss was an agonizing one on Monday, as his illness coupled with the 95-degree heat left him dehydrated and unable to finish out his match against Tufts, needing to be carried off the court in the third set after using every medical timeout and set break to his disposal trying to rehydrate, and finally having nothing left. The Stags eventually dropped a 5-3 decision to end their season with a 27-7 record. 

Liu had three days off to replenish and get healthy to try to make a run in the singles championship, and was close to his normal self in the first set. He came up just short, though, falling 7-5, and Force took the momentum into the second set and won 6-1.

The poorly-timed illness led to a frustrating ending, but the senior season was a truly remarkable one for Liu, who played No. 5 singles for CMS in 2020 before the COVID cancellation, and came back after the pandemic hiatus to be the No. 5 player in the country. He earned All-America honors with an ITA West Region championship in the fall, was named the SCIAC Athlete of the Year, and led the Stags to their 15th SCIAC title in a row and their 11th NCAA Regional title in a row. 

Liu, Jack Katzman and Ethan Carroll will graduate from the 2022 squad, but the Stags should be right back in the mix for a national title again next year, with Philip Martin (12-5 singles), Matthew Robinson (22-2), Christopher Li (23-5) and Michael Hao (18-4) back from the top six that ended this season.