Ithaca Off to Strong Start at St. Lawrence Invitational
Day 1 Results (PDF)
CANTON, N.Y. – The Ithaca College men's tennis team got its 2016-17 season underway on Saturday, as it faced some stiff competition at the St. Lawrence Invitational. The Bombers had eight members of the team square off across three flights in singles action, while they also sent five doubles tandems across two flights in doubles play.
The IC men got off to a strong start to the two-day event, as four men's netters advanced to tomorrow's semifinal round in singles play, while one combo is still alive in doubles action.
"A" Flight Singles
Three Ithaca men took to the courts in the "A" Flight, as senior
Wes Davis, sophomore
Michael Gardiner, and freshman
Minos Stavrakas hit the courts at the Sammis Tennis Complex.
In his first taste of collegiate action, Stavrakas posted an impressive debut with a pair of victories to advance to tomorrow's semifinal. He defeated RIT's Jared Ingoglia 8-3 in the first pro-set of the day. He went on to blow past Rochester's Sam Leeman 8-1 in the quarterfinal round matchup.
Gardiner defeated Nazareth's Lamar Hurt 8-2 in the opening match of the day, but was unable to contend with Jonah Salita of Hobart in the quarterfinal, falling in an 8-2 decision. In one of the best individual matches of the day, Davis competed well with Sahaj Somani of Rochester. The two netters went toe-to-toe in a pro-set that went to a super-breaker, but Somani pulled away for a 7-2 win in the tiebreaker to take a 9-8 decision.
"B" Flight Singles
The Bombers posted their best results in the "B" Flight, advancing two to tomorrow's semifinal. Three freshmen made their Ithaca debuts, as
Liam Spiegel, Colton Lavery, and
Jared Fields showed well.
Spiegel got the day started with an 8-1 win over Burke Paxton of Hamilton. He followed that with an emphatic 8-3 victory over Kevin Frommer of tournament-host St. Lawrence.
Fields also won both of his matches on the afternoon. Like his teammate Davis, the IC freshman was also locked in a heated battle in the opening round. He pushed Brody Ryan of Hobart to a super-breaker, before defeating the Statesmen netter 7-4. The rookie was not gassed despite the long opening match, defeating Tanmay Thakkar of Rochester 8-2 in the quarterfinals.
Lavery got off to a strong start to the day with an 8-1 victory over Dan Freilicher of Nazareth. He ran into a buzz saw in the quarterfinal round, as Yellowjackets netter, Andrew Nunno, took an 8-2 decision.
"C" Flight Singles
IC had two men compete in the "C" Flight, as senior Nathan Wolf and freshman
Max Prestwich got their seasons underway. Wolf won both of his matches to advance to tomorrow.
Wolf opened the day with an 8-0 sweep over Jameson Keppeler of Nazareth. He followed that effor with an 8-5 victory over Alexander Punj of Rochester in the quarterfinals. Prestwich locked in a competitive battle with Jun Yuminaga of Rochester in the first round, but ultimately fell in an 8-6 decision.
"A" Flight Doubles
The Bombers had three doubles tandem competing in the "A" Flight, as Davis and freshman
Sam McGrath,
Lorenzo Viguie-Ramos/Lavery, and Stavrakas/Spiegel saw action.
Davis and McGrath opened the afternoon with an 8-2 win over Nazareth's Lamar Hurt and Dan Freilicher to advance to the quarterfinal round. The Bomber duo fell to Hobart's Jonah Salita and Danny Kot 8-1.
Viguie-Ramos/Lavery and Stavrakas/Spiegel both advanced straight to the quarterfinals, but were unable to move into tomorrow's semifinals. Viguie-Ramos/Lavery came up short in an 8-6 decision to Elliot Solandt and Kevin Frommer of St. Lawrence. Stavrakas/Spiegel dropped an 8-4 bout against Andrew Nunno and Sam Leeman of Rochester.
"B" Flight Doubles
Ithaca's lone doubles tandem to advance out of Day One came in the "B" Flight, as the tandem of Wolf and Fields combined for a pair of victories. They opened with an 8-5 win over Marco Amendola and Alec Roslin of St. Lawrence. They followed that with an 8-3 win over Hamilton's Matt Haas and Burke Paxton in the quarterfinals.
The duo of Prestwich and Gardiner won probably the most compelling doubles match of the afternoon. They pushed Colin Molloy and Joe Mallon of Hobart to a super-breaker, winning it 7-4, to take a 9-8 decision. The combo was unable to advance to tomorrow, as Dean Sponholz and Spencer Whitmire of St. Lawrence took an 8-5 decision in the quarterfinal.
Looking Ahead
Action is set to resume at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning with semifinal round action in singles play.