Men's, women's tennis thrash UPenn in Ivy League play

The men and women’s tennis teams opened their Ivy League playthis past Saturday. Both teams played against the University of Pennsylvania and secured 6-1 victories. The No. 28ranked men (16-4, 1-0 Ivy) played against the No. 57ranked Quakers (14-4, 0-1 Ivy) at home. The women (7-7, 1-0 Ivy), ranked 58thin the nation, travelled to Philadelphia to face off against the unranked Penn team (7-5, 0-1 Ivy).

The Quakers were the 12th ITA-ranked team the men have had to play thus far this season. The Tigers got off to an early victory by winning the doubles point. At third doubles, sophomore Alex Day and freshman Ben Tso earned a win with a decisive 6-2 victory. Freshmen Luke Gamble and Diego Vives then secured the victory at second doubles with a score of 6-4. To start singles, Gamble gave Princeton a 2-0 lead with a victory at sixth singles. He defeated his opponent Marshall Sharp 7-6 (3), 6-2. Penn then responded with a drawn-out three-set match victory as sophomore Josh Yablon suffered a 6-1, 4-6, 6-1 loss. This was the only point Penn would get, however. At second singles, sophomore Tom Colautti pushed Princeton to a 3-1 lead. He won his match in a close 7-6 (5), 6-4 nail biter. Vives closed out the match for the Tigers at fifth singles for his second win of the day, taking the match by a scoreline 6-3, 4-6, 6-2. Senior Zack McCourt and Day finished their matches even after the overall match was over. Respectively, they won 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-1 and 3-6, 7-5, 6-2.

In Philadelphia, the women took the momentum from their spring break victories in California to defeat the Quakers. Like the men, they started off quickly by winning the doubles point. At first doubles, senior Lindsay Graff and sophomore Alanna Wolff won their match at 8-4. The Tigers then took a 1-0 lead with a decisive 8-1 victory at second doubles by junior Amanda Muliawan and sophomore Dorothy Tang. Princeton only lost one match, coming at fifth singles. Tang lost her match 6-4, 6-4. The rest of the women did not have as much trouble, however. The three victories that led to the fourth point for the Tigers all came in straight sets. Muliawan, freshman Katrine Steffensen and sophomore Caroline Joyce each won their respective matches, allowing the Tigers to reach the four points needed for victory. Muliawan won her match 6-2, 6-4, Steffensen won 6-4, 6-2 and Joyce took her match 6-3, 6-4. The other matches still on court when the Tigers won had split sets, so they agreed to play a ten-point super-breaker in lieu of a third set. At first singles, Lindsay Graff won her match 6-4, 4-6, (10-5), while Alanna Wolff won her match 6-1, 4-6, (10-7). This was the seventh time in a row the Tigers have beaten Penn.

The men’s team will now travel to Brownon Saturdayfollowed by a match against Yale in New Haven. The women’s team will also play Brown and Yale, although these matches areon FridayandSaturdayand will be played at home.