The Dartmouth men's tennis team wrapped up a frustrating week at the Division I Wilson/ITA Northeast Regional Championships hosted by Dartmouth at the College's very own Alexi Boss Tennis Center from Oct. 20 through Oct. 25.
No member of the Big Green made it past the Round of 64, but the tight losses suffered during the tournament have not dampened the team's spirit.
Brandon Wai, the No. 1 seed from Yale, took the singles title by downing fourth-seeded Mark Barry of Penn State in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1.
Wai lost only one set throughout the entire singles draw, which came in his 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 decision against Penn's Jason Pinksy. The Brown tandem of Phil Charm and Dan Hangeby garnered the doubles crown in an 8-6 triumph over Marty and Jimmy Moore of Columbia.
Raj Shrestha '06, Jeff Schechtman '08 and Ari Gayer '09 represented Dartmouth in the singles draw, with both Shrestha (6-2, 2-6, 6-2) and Gayer (6-4, 6-2) advancing to the second round.
Schechtman dropped his fist round match, 7-5, 6-4 to Mike Caldwell of Yale.
However, Shrestha and Gayer met similar fates in the following round. Shrestha dropped a 7-5, 7-6 (3) decision to Miloz Gudzowski, also of Yale.
Gayer, coming fresh off his first ITA victory, lost in straight sets to the No. 15 seed, Jon Boym of Penn, 6-3, 6-1.
In the doubles field, the Big Green's lone entry of Schechtman and Gayer dropped their opening tilt against Cornell's Daniel Brous and Charm Bak, 8-6.
Despite Dartmouth's early exits, Coach Chuck Kinyon remained optimistic about his players' effort. "Raj played a very solid match against an old rival from Texas, Gudzowski," he said. "Schechtman, who has had a very good fall season, had a rough go against Caldwell of Yale in his match."
Coach Kinyon did not have such encouraging words on the matter of his doubles team. "Probably the biggest disappointment was Schechtman and Gayer's doubles loss to Brous/Bak after being up a break and cruising along."
However, he mentioned the tandem's solid play during the fall campaign and added that they "should be a factor as the season goes along."
When asked about the opportunity to host an event as large as the ITA Regionals, Coach Kinyon expressed his excitement to have the College as the focus of the college tennis world.
"Having the Division 1 Wilson/ITA Northeast Regional Tournament here at Dartmouth was a great way to showcase our great school and terrific tennis facilities," he said. "I hope it will help the college tennis community understand what great a place Dartmouth College is for tennis."
The men's tennis team will wrap up their fall portion of the season November 5-7 when they host the Big Green Invitational at the Boss Tennis Center.
