HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College men's tennis team rallied from an early doubles deficit to double up University of the Sciences on Monday during a blustery day on the Norman B. Bramall Tennis Courts. The Fords (6-1) won five of the six singles matches to come back for a convincing win against the NCAA Division II Devils (5-9).
Haverford's early doubles point came courtesy of the Fords' all-conference pairing of Luis Acaba and Harrison Elbert. Playing against the No. 10-ranked pairing from the Division II East rankings, Haverford's senior captains pulled through in a hard-fought 8-6 victory. Haverford's No. 1 doubles team is now riding its own five-match winning streak in the top position.
The Devils countered that victory with an 8-6 win of their own at the No. 3 position. The pairing of Tanner Kerr and Chandat Phan came out just ahead of Caleb Mayer and Benjamin Soloway. In the middle slot, Borna Novak and Tajay McLeod were 8-1 winners for University of the Sciences.
Soloway quickly rebounded from a tough doubles defeat with the most resounding win of singles play. He did not allow a game in his first set, and followed that up with a 6-1 second to record a straight set victory. Soloway's match was his first inside the varsity singles lineup this season.
Haverford also came away with straight set victories in three other positions. Josh Moskovitz moved up to No. 2 on Monday and continued his perfect 7-0 stretch to start the spring season. The Fords' freshman won 6-3, 6-4. Zack Mason continued his personal six-match winning streak that has coincided with the team's success. Mason was a 6-2, 7-5 winner at No. 5 singles. Elbert was the lone Haverford player to win both singles and doubles as he took the No. 3 singles match by a 6-4, 6-2 score.
The two sides also played a pair of 10-point tiebreaks to close out play. Ishaan Prinz emerged victorious in his tiebreak at No. 4 singles. Prinz won the first set by a 6-2 score. He bounced back from a tough second set with a 10-7 tiebreak victory. Dais Nakayama nearly upended the No. 20 singles player in the DII East Region. He forced a tiebreak with a 6-4 win in the second set. Even his tiebreak needed extra points before he was edged out, 13-11.
Men's tennis will now enjoy a split weekend with the team on Saturday. On the road, Centennial Conference action will take place when the Fords travel to McDaniel for a 12 p.m. match. On the home front, Haverford will play host to Rutgers-Camden at 1 p.m.