Alex Ganchev Hits Forehand Against Bowdoin College on Voute Courts.

Men's Tennis 5/9/2024 4:21:00 PM

Men's Tennis Travels Down I-95 For NCAA Tournament Opening Rounds

MEDFORD, MA (May 8, 2024) - The sixth-ranked Tufts University men's tennis squad will clash with the winner of Christopher Newport vs Baruch this Saturday, at 2 p.m., in a neutral site match-up on the campus of Swarthmore College. This opening game of the NCAA DIII tournament for the Jumbos will be a round-of-32 matchup.

Game Details
NCAA Tournament Website - Bracket
Schedule:
Saturday, May 11 - Tufts (16-6) vs Winner of Christopher Newport vs Baruch - 1 p.m.
Sunday, May 12 - Remaining team vs Winner of Swarthmore vs N.C. Wesleyan/Houghton - 1 p.m.
Location: Swarthmore, PA - Faulkner Courts - Directions

Tufts vs. Christopher Newport and Baruch
If Tufts ends up being matched with Baruch, it would bring a little déjà vuas, as last season the teams matched up in the NCAA tournament. Tufts came away with the victory in that matchup by a score of 5-0 in a game hosted by the Jumbos. That is the only matchup between the schools, and Tufts has never played Christopher Newport.

A Look At The Jumbos (16-6)
Tufts comes into the tournament ranked sixth but looking to avenge their loss in the championship game of the NCAA tournament last year when they came up short in a 5-2 result against Case Western Reserve University. This year, the Jumbos boast a strong .667 win percentage but are entering the tournament via an at-large bid after falling in the NESCAC championship vs Bowdoin on a 5-3 score. Going into that game, the Jumbos were riding an 11-game win streak, which included 7 NESCAC season wins. In total, the squad finished their conference regular season schedule with a record of 8-2, highlighted by an 8-1 win over Hamilton College on Senior Day.

Multiple Tufts players were recently honored in the NESCAC's end-of-season awards. Vuk Vuksanovic was named All-NESCAC First Team Singles while Javier Gonzalez was named All-NESCAC Second Team Singles and Lachie Macintosh and Derin Acaroglu made All-NESCAC Second Team Doubles.

Vuksanovic has manned first singles for the Jumbos and has a record of 12-4. Gonzalez has largely held down the duties of second singles with a record of 14-4. Other Jumbos with double-digit singles victories are MacIntosh (12-3), Acaroglu ( 10-4), and Garv Bahl (16-3). In doubles, Tufts has largely relied on three duos. Vuksanovic and Alex Ganchev have gone 9-5, Acaroglu and MacIntosh have gone 11-2, and Corey Marley and Sacha Maes hold a record of 12-3.

The Jumbos are coached by Karl Gregor, who is in his eighth season. Tufts is looking for their first national championship.

A Look At The Bearcats (12-5)
The Baruch Bearcats come into their matchup with Christopher Newport on a high, having claimed the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) title Thursday, May 2nd, in a 5-0 victory over Brooklyn College. That title marks the fifth straight for the Bobcats, who have won the league every year since 2017 that COVID has not caused cancellation. Despite their success in the league, they have not recently made it past the second round of the NCAA tournament, losing to opponents such as Tufts, Middlebury, and MIT. Overall, this is their 12th tournament appearance.

This season, they hold a record of 12-5 overall and 5-0 in conference. On the singles side, they are led by junior Nicholas Santiago, who holds a record of 14-2, sophomore Tuna Nergizoglu, who has a record of 12-3, and freshman Reda Ljazouli, whose record is 11-1. On the doubles side, they commonly line up with Nicholas Santiago and Juan Paredes, a combo with a 12-3 record, and Reda Ljazouli with Jordan Hernandez, a pair that has gone 10-3 this season.

Baruch is led by head coach Gregory Wyzykowski, who is in his seventh season.

A Look At The Captains (13-7)
Similarly to Tufts, the Captains of Christopher Newport University enter the tournament via an at-large bid after falling in their conference championship. They fell in the championship of the Coast to Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) against Mary Washington by a 5-3 score. In regular-season the Captains boasted a .650 winning percentage highlighted by wins over number 44 ranked Virginia Wesleyan University, number 38 ranked Salisbury University, and 39th ranked Haverford College. Their 13 wins this year are the most since the 2018-19 season when they went 13-9. They are currently ranked as the 29th Division III school, according to Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) rankings and they are making their 4th NCAA tournament appearance.

In singles, Christopher Newport is led by sophomore Vincent Young who has a record of 13-3, and senior Edvard Porsmyr Hansen whose record is 11-8. The two have largely split the role of first and second singles throughout the season. A host of other players have contributed in the other singles spots, including Ashton Legum, who is 14-1, and Bhuvanesh Kumaresan, who is 8-1. In doubles, the Captains have relied on Vincent Truong with Bhuvanesh Kumaresan, a pairing that has gone 12-6, and Edvard Porsmyr Hansen with Ashton Legum, a pair that holds a 12-8 record.

The Captains are led by coach Eric Christianson, who is in the 12th season.

Rest Of The Tournament
The additional schools competing at Swarthmore this weekend are North Carolina Wesleyan University and Houghton University, both champions of their respective conferences. The winner of that matchup will play the 8th-ranked Garnet of Swarthmore. The winner of Swarthmore's first game plays the winner of Tufts' first game. Middleburry, Williams, and Bowdoin will also represent the NESCAC in the tournament, though all three schools are in the lower half of the bracket, and could not face Tufts until the championship.

In Tufts' quarter of the bracket sits first-ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps who are 25-3 on the year. On the other side of Tufts' half is the University of Chicago, ranked second. The rest of the time five is made up of Case Western Reverse University, Bowdoin College, and Emory University. Those three teams are all in the lower half of the bracket.

Case Western is looking to defend its title and become the first school since Emory from 2019-2021 (2020 canceled due to COVID) to win consecutive championships. The last NESCAC to hoist the trophy was Middleburry, who did so in 2018.

--JUMBOS--

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Players Mentioned

Derin Acaroglu: Junior

Alex Ganchev: Sophomore

Javier Gonzalez: Sophomore

Lachie Macintosh: Junior

Sacha Maes: Sophomore

Corey Marley: Senior

Vuk Vuksanovic: Junior

Garv Bahl: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Derin Acaroglu
: Junior

Alex Ganchev
: Sophomore

Javier Gonzalez
: Sophomore

Lachie Macintosh
: Junior

Sacha Maes
: Sophomore

Corey Marley
: Senior

Vuk Vuksanovic
: Junior

Garv Bahl
: Freshman