he men’s tennis team wants to be recognized as the best squad in New York. Yesterday’s 6-1 victory over Binghamton brought them a step closer to that goal.
Coming off a 6-1 loss at Penn State last weekend, the men were looking to redeem themselves yesterday evening at Reis Tennis Center.
“We always have something to prove,” said senior Dan Brous. “We want to prove we are the best in team in New York.”
[img_assist|nid=21358|title=Huah!|desc=Cornell competes against Binghamton last night.|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=76]
The men dominated the Bearcats, winning all doubles and singles matches, excluding senior Josh Raff’s three set tie-breaker loss.
Even though the Red’s main competition for New York supremacy is Columbia, the squad still approached yesterday’s contest focused.
“This is their [Binghamton’s] super bowl,” Brous said. “I am glad that we were ready for them.“
Winning in staight sets were Brous and senior Nick Brunner, sophomore Joshua Goldstein and junior Weston Nichols.
The Red also swept all three doubles matches. Brous teamed with junior Rory Heggie for a win, while sophomore Kyle Doppelt joined Goldstein to match the feat with a victory.
Finally, the duo of Brous and Brunner tallied the Red’s third doubles triumph.
The most competitive matches came at the No. 1 and No. 4 singles spots. At No. 1, Raff lost by the tight score of 11-9 in a tie-breaker third set. At No. 4, Doppelt squeezed out a victory, surviving multiple match points to eventually escape with a 13-11 win in the third-set tie-breaker.
Despite the victory, Doppelt was not fully satisfied.
“It was a tough one to win,” Doppelt said. “It is the beginning of the season and I am trying to find my swing again.”
After suffering a 6-3, 6-2 defeat last weekend at Penn State, Doppelt hopes this match will be a precursor for future success.
“Hopefully this will help me turn it around,” Doppelt said.
Cheering on Doppelt during his three-set thriller was the rest of the men’s tennis team — who finished early enough to catch the majority of the heated contest’s culmination.
“It was nice to have them there,” Doppelt said. “It is good to know that they always have my back.”
Looming in the distant future, however, is a match against Columbia — the other standout team from New York — in early March.
“The match against Columbia is still far away,” Doppelt said. “But this win was a good stepping stone to the top.”