Dartmouth Men's Tennis Drops Tough 4-3 Decision to Williams

March 31, 2006

Results

HANOVER, N.H. - After enjoying the unexpected 70+ degree weather in Hanover on Friday afternoon, things weren't as sunny for the Dartmouth men's tennis team as it fell to Williams, 4-3. With the loss, the Big Green falls to 8-9 on the season.

Due to the 3:00 p.m. start, instead of playing doubles first, singles started the action. Williams got out to a 2-0 lead with wins at Nos. 2 and 3. Dartmouth countered with a win at No. 4 as freshman Ari Gayer (Hollis, N.Y.) got his outdoor game together with a convincing 6-4, 6-2 win.

Williams went up 3-1 with a three-set win at No. 5 singles, leaving Dartmouth's two seniors, Raj Shrestha (Katy, Texas) at No. 3 and Rashaad Elder-Bush (Boston, Mass.) at No. 6, fighting to keep the match alive. After a mild hiccup in the second set, Shrestha dominated 6-1 in the third to pull the Big Green one match closer to evening the overall match score. Elder-Bush battled back from a 5-1 third set deficit to lead 6-5, but lost a close tiebreak 7-4. Despite the valiant comeback, Williams lead 4-2 and had clinched the match.

Moving inside the Boss Tennis Center and Gordon Pavilion for doubles, the Big Green came out firing, winning the doubles point with wins at Nos. 1 and 3.

Dartmouth will begin the Ivy League season next weekend with a trip to Columbia on Friday and Cornell on Saturday.

Williams 4, Dartmouth 3

Doubles:

1. David Waslen/Steve McGaughey (D) def. MacKenzie/Simonette (W) 8-5

2. Kivitz/Thacher (W) def. Rashaad Elder-Bush/Jeff Schechtman (D) 9-8 (5)

3. Raj Shrestha/Ari Gayer (D) def. Greenberg/Haley (W) 8-2

Singles:

1. Greenberg (W) def. David Waslen (D) 6-4, 6-4

2. MacKenzie (W) def. Jeff Schechtman (D) 6-1, 6-1

3. Raj Shrestha (D) def. Kivitz (W) 6-1, 6-7 (1), 6-1

4. Ari Gayer (D) def. Simonette (W) 6-4, 6-2

5. Haley (W) def. Steve McGaughey (D) 3-6, 6-2, 6-1

6. Monier (W) def. Rashaad Elder-Bush (D) 7-6 (4), 2-6, 7-6 (4)

Schedules