WEST WINDSOR, New Jersey – The Marist men's tennis team has advanced to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship match after defeating the Quinnipiac Bobcats, 4-0, Saturday afternoon. The Red Foxes will face the defending champion and first-seeded Monmouth Hawks Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.
“It was very fitting that our senior Dylan clinched the match,” said head coach Tim Smith. “Although we won 4-0 it was not indicative of the overall match as the three other matches that were left we split sets in all of those.”
The Red Foxes earned the crucial doubles point after winning from the second and third doubles positions. Javier Restrepo and Gianlucca Massa teamed up to defeat the Bobcats' Stern and Yannone, 6-1. Rudolf Kurz and Christopher Gladden then defeated Ezaka and Alper, 6-3 to secure the first point of the match.
Kurz carried his hot play over into singles as he handedly defeated Zarestsky, 6-0, 6-1 to put Marist up 2-0 overall. Justin Chanthalangsy also won his singles match in straight sets, as he defeated Cachapero, 7-5, 7-5.
The next four matches all went to third sets with Quinnipiac looking to claw back and the Red Foxes looking to clinch. Fortunately for the Red Foxes, Dylan Fletcher came through with the clincher at the fifth singles spot before any of the other matches could be decided.
Fletcher after winning the first set, 6-1, and then dropping the second set, 6-0, closed out Alper and the Bobcats with a 6-4 third set victory. Restrepo's match at first singles, Massa's match at third singles, and Lars Schouten's match at sixth singles all went unfinished in their third sets.
“This was the best team effort we've had all year especially after winning the doubles that in turn helped jump start us in the singles,” Smith said. “Tomorrow against Monmouth the doubles again will be a very important point, I hope with a meal and some rest it will be a very exciting contest.”
The Red Foxes move on to face a familiar foe in the championship match after losing a tight match to unbeaten Monmouth, 4-3, on April 22 just a week ago. The Red Foxes are in pursuit of their 13th overall MAAC title, the last of which came the back end of a three-peat in 2015.
Marist vs Quinnipiac
Doubles
#1 Chanthalangsy/Fletcher (MAR) vs. Zaretsky/Rozenstein (QUI) 5-6, unfinished
#2 Restrepo/Massa (MAR) def. Stern/Yannone (QUI) 6-1
#3 Kurz/Gladden (MAR) def. Ezaka/Alper, 6-3
Order of finish: (1,2)
Singles
#1 Restrepo (MAR) vs. Ezaka (QUI) 7-5, 6-3, 2-3, unfinished
#2 Kurz (MAR) def. Zarestsky (QUI) 6-0, 6-1
#3 Massa (MAR) vs. Rozenstein (QUI) 4-6, 6-3, 1-5, unfinished
#4 Chanthalangsy (MAR) def. Cachapero (QUI) 7-5, 7-5
#5 Fletcher (MAR) def. Alper (QUI) 6-1, 0-6, 6-4
#6 Schaulten (MAR) vs. Yannone (QUI) 6-2, 4-6, 2-2 unfinished
Order of finish: (2,4,5)
