Tennis: Princeton leaves California with winning record

“The pieces are coming together at just the right time,” head coach Glenn Michibata said. “[Senior] Peter Capkovic, [senior] Alex Vuckovic and [junior] Charlie [Brosens] have performed consistently well since the ECAC tournament back in mid-February, and now [junior] George Carpeni, [sophomore] Ryan Kim, [sophomore] Alex Faust and [freshman] Coleman Crutchfield are also hitting their stride.”

The trip got off to a slow start for the Tigers, as they suffered a narrow 4-3 defeat to the University of San Diego. Entering the match, the Toreros had a 5-11 record and were ranked 71st in the nation as a result of their difficult schedule. Despite capturing the doubles point behind wins at the first and third positions, the Tigers were unable to overcome the strong play of San Diego’s singles players, as they dropped four of the six singles matches. Vuckovic and Brosens captured the singles victories for Princeton at the third and sixth positions, respectively.

The Tigers were forced to quickly put the disappointment of the San Diego match behind them as they squared off against Purdue the next morning. Princeton again benefited from strong doubles play in capturing the doubles point.

“Our doubles [play] has been pretty consistent, especially our No. 3 team of [freshman] Yohei Shoji and George Carpeni, who are 8-3 on the year and just ended an eight-match winning streak,” Michibata said.

Princeton was forced to rely on the lower half of its singles ladder, however, to secure a close 4-3 victory. Brosens, Kim and Crutchfield won at the fourth through sixth positions, respectively.

On Friday, Princeton continued the trend of tightly contested matches, this time managing a 4-3 win over No. 60 Utah. The victory marked the team’s first triumph over a ranked opponent this season. The Tigers found themselves in an unfamiliar position at the start of the match, as they lost the doubles point. But a strong singles effort powered by wins from Capkovic, Carpeni, Kim and Faust, propelled Princeton to victory.

The Tigers wrapped up their road trip with another quick turnaround as they faced No. 70 UC Irvine on Saturday morning. The Tigers came out strong early and never looked back en route to a 7-0 thrashing. Princeton won at every position except third doubles in an effort that was exactly what the team needed as it heads into Ivy League play.

“This has been the most successful spring break trip I’ve been on in my four years here, and we are extremely confident going into the Ivy season,” Vuckovic said.

The No. 39 women’s tennis team continued its strong play over spring break in Tennessee and California by taking two out of three matches, and the Tigers have now won in seven of their last eight matches. The Tigers will conclude their road trip today at Stanford.

The Tigers (12-5 overall) opened their road trip on Tuesday against Middle Tennessee State with a perfect 7-0 effort. Princeton showed no signs of rust from its extended layoff, as it earned victories at every position. None of the singles matches went to a third set, and only the second doubles match went to a tiebreaker.

With the warm weather upon them, the Tigers said they are excited to play outdoors and have the opportunity to prove themselves against some of the nation’s elite teams.

“I know the entire team was really looking forward to the opportunity to play experienced teams in a beautiful setting while on our spring trip,” freshman Hilary Bartlett said. “We came out strong against [Middle Tennessee State], even though it was our first match outside.”

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The experience of facing No. 29 Vanderbilt, however, proved to be too much for the Tigers, as they fell 5-2 to the Commodores in a contest that featured several close matches. Vanderbilt captured the doubles point on wins at the second and third doubles positions, but Princeton battled back to tie the score with Bartlett’s win at the second singles position. The Tigers took a 2-1 lead briefly after sophomore Blakely Ashley was victorious at the sixth position, but Vanderbilt battled back to take the other four singles matches to secure the 5-2 victory. The third through fifth singles matches proved to be tightly contested, each one featured a first-set tiebreaker.

Hampered by the wind and sun, the Tigers managed to overcome sloppy play early to earn a 5-2 victory over St. Mary’s on Sunday afternoon.

“We didn’t necessarily play our cleanest tennis given the tough outdoor conditions with wind and sun, but we all stepped onto the court with a positive, competitive attitude that helped us earn the 5-2 win,” Bartlett said.

Wins at the first and third doubles positions secured the match’s opening point for the Tigers. Princeton then won four of the next five singles matches to put away St. Mary’s en route to a convincing victory. Bartlett, junior Melissa Saiontz, freshman Rachel Saiontz and freshman Lauren McHale all won their singles matches for the Tigers.

With the all-important start to the Ivy League season looming, one might think that the Tigers would look to Tuesday’s match against No. 11 Stanford as a mere tuneup before the real season begins. But the Tigers said they relish the opportunity to take out one of the nation’s elite teams on its home turf.

“The opportunity to play Stanford on Tuesday on Stanford’s home courts is so exciting for us as a team, ” Bartlett said. “Stanford has an incredible winning streak on its home courts, so the most important thing for us as a team will be to show up on Tuesday and play with courage and belief behind our shots.”

It is this competitive attitude that will make the Tigers a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming Ivy League season.