The men’s tennis team won both its non-league home contests this weekend, shutting out East Tennessee State University 7-0 and defeating Radford University 5-2 at the Boss Tennis Center and Gordon Pavilion. The women’s team prevailed in a close competition against Boston University, triumphing 4-3.
On Friday evening, the Big Green (5-1) men swept East Tennessee (2-5), led by dominant doubles play. Cameron Ghorbani ’14 and Brendan Tannenbaum ’16, playing at the No. 1 spot, won their match 6-1.
The two other doubles teams of Brandon DeBot ’14 and Dovydas Sakinis ’16 and Chris Kipouras ’15 and Diego Pedraza ’17 won their matches 6-2 and 6-1 in the number two and three spots, respectively.
“The team is very good at treating each match the same,” George Wall ’17 said after his match on Friday. “It is about re-focusing every day.”
Continuing the early lead from doubles play, the Big Green won all six of its singles matches. Sakinis, DeBot, Ghorbani and Pedraza won their matches in straight sets, while Kipouras and Wall needed three sets to defeat their opponents.
“We addressed doubles play in the week leading up to the matches and focused on starting faster,” men’s head coach Chris Drake said. “The team did really well and dominated a good East Tennessee State team that is always competitive.”
Men’s tennis continued its stellar home play with another win on Saturday afternoon against Radford (0-2), winning 5-2. The Big Green is still unbeaten at home and swept the doubles matches for the fifth time this season.
De Bot, Wall and Tannenbaum won their singles matches in straight sets, leading the Big Green to an overall victory. Wall’s win in straight sets was far more comfortable than Friday’s third-set tie breaker.
“Against Radford, the team did well in doubles, but we were a bit more passive in that match.” Drake said. “We adjusted our pre-match warm-ups and focused in on the identity of the three doubles teams, which led to great results.”
Wall attributes the team’s early success to the high level of competition the team brings in practice, which translates to match scenarios.
“There is a lot of positive competition in practice, and you can see the work paying off in the play,” he said.
On Saturday afternoon, the women’s tennis team (1-1) beat Boston University (3-1) 4-3 on Saturday afternoon in a tight match.
“Whenever the players are putting themselves in a position to win, the team is playing with great effort,” women’s head coach Bob Dallis said.
The two teams split the singles matches 3-3, but Dartmouth won the doubles point thanks to victories from the teams of Taylor Ng ’17 and Katherine Yau ’16 and captain Melissa Matsuoka ’14 and Akiko Okuda ’15. It was Sarah Bessen ’16, playing in the number six slot, clinched the victory for Dartmouth, breaking a 3-3 tie with her straight set win 6-4, 6-1.
“BU is a difficult place to play. Winning down there is a nice accomplishment,” Dallis said. “The team competed very well and showed a lot of poise. Every one stayed calm in a tough environment.”
The Dartmouth men’s tennis team returns to action on Friday, Feb. 7, hosting the University of Buffalo and Boston University.
“It is always easier to play at home,” Drake said. “The players are used to the type of courts and their speed, which gives them great confidence. We can create even more energy in the building.”
The women will play next at the ECAC Tournament in New York from Feb. 7-9.
