Doehler, Hagermoser Force Third Sets in Singles; Svenning Records Lone Victory as Yale Falls to UNCW 4-1
WILMINGTON, N.C. – The Yale men's tennis team saw its seven-match winning streak come to a halt on Friday, falling to nationally ranked UNC Wilmington 4-1. The Bulldogs, who were fighting fatigue after a clash with UNC Charlotte the previous day, actually performed far better than the final score indicated; if the match had not been cut short as soon as UNCW secured four points, it very well may have ended with a narrower 4-3 result. So although the Elis emerged from Friday's match on the losing side of things, they can certainly take pride in the fact that they held their own against one of the toughest teams in Division I collegiate tennis.
Feeling especially confident on its home courts, UNCW seized the initiative from the outset in doubles play. At No. 1 doubles, UNCW's Aviv Ben Shabat and Christiaan Van der Burgh overcame Yale's Fedor Andrienko and Stefan Doehler, while the Seahawks' No. 2 pairing Leskinnen and Veys edged Photos Photiades and Martin Svenning, 6-3. Despite Friday's disappointing result, Photiades and Svenning have turned heads this season with a 6-1 overall record together. Although the doubles round ended immediately with the pair of UNCW victories, it should be noted that Yale's Jason Brown and Alex Hagermoser were competing well in the No. 3 spot and had forced a 4-4 deadlock at the time of stoppage.
After dropping the doubles point, the Bulldogs looked to mount a comeback in singles. Senior Martin Svenning led the way for Yale with a masterful 6-2, 6-1 performance over UNCW's Ben Shabat at No. 4 singles; this result improved his singles record to an impressive 7-2 in his last nine matches. And although the Elis followed Svenning's lead and elevated their level of play across the board, UNCW proved simply too strong on the day. At No. 5 singles, Yale freshman Dennis Wang fell to Xander Veys in straight sets; Andrienko also had trouble with UNCW star Van der Burgh in the No. 2 spot, losing 6-2, 6-4. Top player Ziqi Wang was last to finish for the Elis on Friday, as he fought well in a competitive 7-5, 6-1 defeat to UNCW top player Santtu Leskinnen.
With the match already decided in the Seahawks' favor, both Doehler and Hagermoser were forced to cut their matches short at No. 3 and 6 singles, respectively. Both Bulldogs, who had forced third sets against strong opposition at the time the match was called, can consider themselves among Yale's top performers on Friday. Doehler, in particular, appears to have rebounded well from injury and has established a five-match unbeaten streak in recent weeks.
Although Friday's defeat brought an end to Yale's incredible seven match winning streak (which began in late January), the squad won't have much time to dwell on it; the Elis are already preparing to face a tough Louisiana side tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. If Yale can get back on the winning side of things to conclude its trip to North Carolina, the team will return home with high hopes for the 2016 Ivy League season, which begins on Apr. 2.
Report by Cameron Ferguson '18, Yale Sports Publicity
