Men's Tennis Finishes Fourth at 2009 NCAA Championships

WU-EMORY RESULTS

Claremont, Calif., May 21, 2009 – The No. 1 Washington University men’s tennis team saw its season come to a close with a 5-3 loss to No. 2 Emory University in the 2009 NCAA Division III Third-Place Match on Thursday, May 21, at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center on the campus of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in Claremont, Calif.

Washington University’s fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championship marks the second-best season in school history, falling only behind last year’s run to the NCAA Championship. WU ends the 2008-09 season with a 22-4 overall record, setting a new school single-season record for wins.

Washington U. and Emory were meeting for the third time this year, splitting the previous two head-to-head matches. Emory beat WU, 6-3, at the Indoor National Championships on Feb. 22, but Washington U. picked up a 5-4 win over the Eagles to capture the 2009 University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship on April 17.

In its win over Emory in the UAA Championship match, the Washington University key to victory was a 3-0 sweep in doubles, meaning the Bears had to capture just two of the six singles contests. The doubles competition proved to be crucial again on Thursday as the Bears did managed to take a 2-1 lead heading into singles, but Emory once again won four of the six singles contests, this time also winning the match.

Seniors Charlie Cutler and Chris Hoeland picked up an 8-3 win over Michael Goodwin and Chris Goodwin at No. 1 doubles, and junior John Watts and senior Nirmal Choradia made it 2-0 Bears following an 8-2 victory against Chris Jordan and Colin Egan at No. 3 doubles. The No. 2 doubles match was the most competitive of the day, and WU sophomores Isaac Stein and Max Woods dropped a hard fought contest to David Caplan and Mark Boren, 9-7.

In singles play, Watts defeated Michael Goodwin, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 in the No. 1 match, but Emory won all four of the other completed singles contests. Hoeland took his match with Chris Redmond at No. 6 singles to a third set following a 6-4 win in the second, but Redmond rebounded to take the third, 6-1.

Up next for Washington University is the 2009 NCAA Individual Championships, set to begin on Friday, May 22, in Claremont, Calif. Watts and Cutler will represent WU in the 32-person singles field, as the No. 3 and No. 12 seeds respectively. Cutler will also play in the 16-team doubles bracket with Hoeland. The Bears’ No. 1 doubles team is making its third-straight appearance in the NCAA Individual Championship Tournament.