Elmira Bows Out of USTA-ITA Regional Championships
HTML Box Score (Day 1) | Tournament Website
Ithaca, NY -- After a long day of fierce competition, all three entrants from the Elmira College men's tennis team have been eliminated from the main draw of the 2013 USTA-ITA Northeast Regional Championships.
The tournament, hosted by Ithaca College, started with singles play. The first EC tennis player to take the court was
Steve Carlette '16 who matched up with Christian Phelps of Vassar College. The second-year standout battled through a myriad of injuries to his right arm, grinding out point after point and leaving everything he had on the court. Carlette, however, would eventually fall to Phelps 6-0, 6-2.
Keith Bujak '15, Elmira's other singles competitor, matched up with NYU's Matthew DeMichiel in the first round. Bujak brought his A-game to the courts today as he battled back from an early deficit and cut the score to 5-4, but he could not tie up the set as he lost 6-4. DeMichiel proved to be too stiff a competitor on this day as he defeated Bujak 6-2 in the second set to advance.
After a break for lunch, it was time for doubles to hit the courts. The Soaring Eagles doubles team of Bujak and
Sam Pine '14 had quite the task in front of them as they played a doubles team from Vassar College. The two teams traded breaks for the first six games of the set until Bujak broke the streak and held for a 4-3 lead. Vassar would get a quick hold on their serve to tie up the match and enter the pivotal ninth game.
The foursome traded punches back and forth, reaching six deuce points in the game. Facing a break-point, Pine served the ball and joined Bujak at the net. Pine volleyed the Vassar return back into play but a lob over both Pine and Bujak caught the baseline and gave Vassar the break. That game seemed to give Vassar an extra boost of confidence as the duo rattled off three-straight games to earn the 8-4 victory.
The three Elmira College players will be back at Ithaca College tomorrow to play in the consolation bracket for both singles and doubles. EC will return to dual-play matches next weekend as they close out their fall season with a home match against Hamilton College on Sunday, September 29th at 3:00 p.m.