<rleton College men’s tennis team used momentum from a couple of close doubles victories to carry the Knights to a 6-1 victory over the University of St. Thomas in the semifinal round of the MIAC Playoffs. Later in the day, Carleton returned to the court against top seed Gustavus Adolphus College and absorbed a 7-2 setback.
In the morning match, Carleton took two of the three doubles contests. Alex Chin ‘13 and Austin Jiang ‘13 rallied from a 7-4 deficit to win 9-7 at third doubles. Paul Cooper ’13 and Peter Dunn ’12 secured an 8-6 victory at first doubles.
Once play moved to singles, Dunn, Jiang, Chin, and Cooper each posted straight-set triumphs to guarantee the team victory.
The finals featured a re-match of last year’s championship match, which was won by Carleton. This time, the Gusties swept doubles and maintained their lead throughout as they claimed the tournament crown and with it the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Championships.
Cooper and Dunn dropped a thrilling match at first doubles, falling 9-8. Due to a shoulder injury, Dunn did not play in singles, which moved the rest of the team up one spot in the lineup with McCoy Becker ’14 inserted at sixth singles.
Four of the singles matches necessitated a third set, with Chin and Becker proving victorious for Carleton’s team points. Chin trailed in the first set before rallying and ultimately winning 7-4, 4-6, 6-4. Becker took the first set of his match in a tiebreaker and picked up the victory by a 7-6, 3-6, 10-8 margin.
For the second consecutive year, six team members were named All-MIAC. Jon Aranda ‘12, Chin, Cooper, and Jiang earned all-conference distinction in both singles and doubles play. Dan Vollman ‘12 and Dunn received recognition for their doubles play.
–Sports Information