Elmira Completes Weekend Sweep at Home Invite with 8-1 Win over Saxons
Score: Elmira College 8, Alfred University 1
Records: Elmira (4-3), Alfred (0-5)
Location: Murray Athletic Center Tennis Dome – Pine Valley, NY
Pine Valley, NY -- Elmira College men's tennis completed the weekend sweep at the EC Spring Kickoff Invitational with an 8-1 throttling of Alfred University this afternoon. The Soaring Eagles improved to 4-3 on the year and concluded this weekend's invite with a 3-0 record.
Once again, Elmira's play in doubles was a key factor in today's win, as the Soaring Eagles won all three matches. EC's third doubles team of
Yaniv Kogan '18 and
Yu Ikeda '16 set the tone early with an 8-2 win. The duo finished the weekend winning 24-of-30 games played en route to a perfect 3-0 showing.
Austin Mansell '16 and
Chris Konow '18 followed suit with an 8-4 win at the second spot, which also capped a perfect 3-0 weekend. The final doubles win came from
Satchal Waters '16 and
Patrick Tracey '18 at the first position, as the tandem took advantage of a single break to claim an 8-6 win.
Elmira needed just two wins in singles to capture its third straight victory of the season, but instead, the Purple and Gold exceeded that number and won five-of-six matches to secure the win. Mansell opened things with a flawless 6-0, 6-0 victory at third singles to put EC ahead 4-0. Shortly after, Tracey clinched the win for the Soaring Eagles with a 6-1, 6-0 win at the fourth spot.
Waters finished next, earning a 6-1, 6-3 straight set victory at second singles. Alfred's Connor Doud put the Saxons on the scoreboard with a straight set win at first singles, but the Soaring Eagles prevailed at fifth and sixth singles to close out the match. Konow was a 6-2, 6-2 winner at fifth singles, while Kogan tallied a 6-3, 6-3 victory at the six spot.
In His Own Words…
Head Coach
Tom Linhart shares his thoughts on his team's play today…
"I am very impressed with our performance this weekend. It is not only great to come out of the weekend with a sweep, but to do it in such convincing fashion is a real momentum builder for us this early in the season."
Coach Linhart describes how Elmira was able to sweep the doubles matches…
"Our play at net today, and all weekend, was crucial. We really came out and dictated the pace of play. We played with far more intensity and aggression than we have in the past."
Coach Linhart reflects on his EC's superb play in singles over the weekend…
"I cannot understate how mentally tough our guys played singles this weekend, especially the lower part of our lineup. For our guys at two through five to go undefeated on the weekend is huge and moving forward it allows us to close out matches in a variety of ways, especially with having leads after doubles."
Coach Linhart shares how he thinks this weekend's results will affect the Soaring Eagles moving forward…
"Today's win has really given the guys confidence and as a whole, I believe we are farther along with our games than I thought we would have been at this point. So, having the break for our guys to stay mentally fresh is going to pay dividends going into the heart of our season."
Turning Point
Elmira's play in doubles was once again the key factor in today's win. The Soaring Eagles swept the doubles matches, including a tight 8-6 win at first doubles, which gave EC a 3-0 lead heading into singles.
Match Recap
- Elmira swept doubles for the second time this weekend.
- Waters and Tracey edged their opponents at the top spot 8-6.
- Mansell and Konow were 8-4 winners at second doubles.
- Kogan and Ikeda cruised to an 8-2 victory.
- The Soaring Eagles won five-of-six singles matches.
- Ikeda kept pace with his opponent early in the first but would eventually fall 6-2, 6-1 at the top spot.
- Waters picked up a 6-1, 6-3 win at second singles.
- Mansell refused to drop a single game in his straight set win at fourth singles, 6-0, 6-0.
- Tracey dropped just one game en route to a 6-1, 6-0 win at fourth singles, which clinched the match for EC today.
- Konow was a straight set winner at fifth singles, winning the match 6-2, 6-2.
- At sixth singles, Kogan downed his opponent by a pair of breaks, 6-3, 6-3.
News and Notes
- The Soaring Eagles improve their record to 4-3 on the season, the first time EC has had a winning record this year.
- EC has now won three straight matches and are 4-1 in its last five matches.
- Elmira was a perfect 15-0 over the weekend in singles matches at spots two through six.
- EC won 23-of-27 matches played this weekend.
- Elmira swept doubles for a second time this weekend.
- Mansell, Konow, and Kogan combined to go 18-0 at this weekend's invite.
Scores
Singles
1. Connor Doud (ALFRED) def.
Yu Ikeda (ELMIRA) 6-2, 6-1
2.
Satchal Waters (ELMIRA) def. Matt Baloga (ALFRED) 6-1, 6-3
3.
Austin Mansell (ELMIRA) def. Mike Wisniewski (ALFRED) 6-0, 6-0
4.
Patrick Tracey (ELMIRA) def. Sean Benoit (ALFRED) 6-1, 6-0
5.
Chris Konow (ELMIRA) def. Pat Brown (ALFRED) 6-2, 6-2
6.
Yaniv Kogan (ELMIRA) def. Kyle Kemper (ALFRED) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles
1. Tracey/Waters (ELMIRA) def. Doud/Baloga (ALFRED) 8-6
2. Mansell/Konow (ELMIRA) def. Brown/Wisniewski (ALFRED) 8-4
3. Ikeda/Kogan (ELMIRA) def. Benoit/Kemper (ALFRED) 8-2
Up Next
Elmira will enjoy a two-week layoff before its next match, a Tuesday, March 8th, meeting with RIT. The Soaring Eagles square off with the Tigers at 4:00 p.m. in Rochester, NY.