GOSHEN, Ind., and HUNTINGTON, Ind. — A near-sweep in the three doubles matches powered the Goshen College men's tennis team to a 7-2 win over Huntington University Tuesday evening at the Goshen College Tennis Complex.
Balazs Pirot and Jon Kaasa won the first match off the courts to put the Maple Leafs ahead. Ironically, they did not start well, losing their first game before winning the next eight. At no. 2 doubles, Luis Perez and Eric Zuercher tried a similar trajectory, falling behind 3-1 and 6-0 before reeling off six of the next seven games to close within 7-6. Needing a break of serve to continue the match, the duo was unable to find it and Huntington earned one of its team points.
Finally, Aritha Weerasinghe and Kartikeya Sharma took until the 11th game, but took the only break of serve in their match and won 8-6 at no. 3.
"This was an important match to win, and it was closer than 7-2 suggests," said Goshen head coach Stan King. "Look no further than the doubles play, where we lost the first six games across the three matches."
With Kaasa out of the singles lineup to rest entering Intercollegiate Tennis Association regionals this weekend and Perez held back due to an arm injury, most of the Maple Leaf lineup played two spots higher than usual in singles play. Goshen still won the first two matches off the courts handily, with Pirot claiming a 6-2, 6-1 win at no. 1 and Palanisamy winning 6-0, 6-1 at no. 4.
"Balazs was focused and played some great points," said King, "while Palanisamy's precision game was in high gear. The remaining four matches were battles, and I'm proud of the way we focused and fought hard."
Eric Cender, the player pressed into service after Lopez's injury, won 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 at no. 6 singles to clinch the team title. Two of the other three matches also went three sets, and the third (an Aritha Weerasinghe win at no. 2 singles) required a tiebreak in the first set.
In the other three-set matches, Eric Zuercher won 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 at no. 3 singles, while Michael Oyer lost at no. 5. Oyer's defeat snapped a 10-match winning streak in singles play that dated back to Sept. 2, 2014.
"I was really pleased to see Eric use an all-court approach to winning points, even when he was behind in the third set," said King. "Michael lost to a competitive, hard-hitting opponent, and it was odd to see him lose after so many matches where he was the best bet to win."
Goshen improves its record to 5-1, with all six matches counting on the conference record. The Maple Leafs will participate in ITA regionals at Grand Rapids, Mich., over the weekend and host Concordia in their next dual match on Sept. 22.
With two conference matches remaining, Goshen is half a game behind Marian (5-0) for first place in the conference and half a game ahead of third-place Grace (4-1). All seven Crossroads League tournament matches are hosted by the higher seed
At Huntington, the Maple Leaf women played without their top two individuals, Noemi Salvador and Kendra Lozano, who were out due to injuries. Shorthanded, Goshen defaulted at no. 6 singles and no. 3 doubles, and with the rest of the team playing two spots higher than usual, Huntington cruised to a 9-0 win.
"I thought Chloe Woodward played as well as any of our players," said women's coach Doug Gossman, "but there's only so much you can say after a match like that."
The women fall to 0-6 on the season and 0-5 in Crossroads League action. Goshen hosts Spring Arbor Saturday at 11 a.m.
Full Men's Results: Huntington 9, Goshen 0
Singles:
1. Balazs Pirot (G) def. Joseph Strazanicky 6-2, 6-1
2. Aritha Weerasinghe (G) def. Ignacio Poncio 7-6(4), 6-4
3. Eric Zuercher (G) def. Giovanni Martinez 6-1, 4-6, 7-5
4. Vasanth Palanisamy (G) def. Vova Kohut 6-0, 6-1
5. Jacob Zadeikis (H) def. Michael Oyer 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
6. Eric Cender (G) def. Daniel Strom 6-4, 4-6, 6-1
Doubles:
1. Pirot/Kaasa (G) def. Poncio/Martinez 8-1
2. Strazanicky/Adeikis (H) def. Perez/Zuercher 8-6
3. Weerasinghe/Sharma (G) def. Kohut/Strom 8-6
Full Women's Results: Huntington 9, Goshen 0
Singles:
1. Constance Golz (H) def. Joelle Friesen 6-0, 6-0
2. Megan Bemisderfer (H) def. Lynnia Noel 6-1, 6-0
3. Celine Rongos (H) def. Chloe Woodward 6-0, 6-1
4. Haley Kuppler (H) def. Abby Banning 6-0, 6-0
5. Alexis Allen (H) def. Megan Eigsti 6-0, 6-0
6. Huntington won by default
Doubles:
1. Bemisderfer/Rongos (H) def. Friesen/Woodward 8-0
2. Golz/Kuppler def. Noel/Banning 8-1
3. Huntington won by default
