CLAREMONT, CA (March 18, 2026) -- No. 5 Tufts University opened strong but No. 2 University of Chicago responded with a dominant singles performance to earn a 6-1 victory on Wednesday at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center at CMS Wednesday.
The Jumbos (6-1) could not have asked for a better start, sweeping all three doubles matches to take a 1-0 lead into singles play. The pairing of Javier Gonzalez and Sacha Maes set the tone with a decisive 6-0 win at No. 1 doubles, while Andrej Djokic and Matej Djokic followed with a 6-3 victory in the No. 2 position. Alex Ganchev and Kaetan Mehta completed the sweep with a 6-4 win at No. 3.
Facing an early deficit, the Maroons (9-2) flipped the match in singles, capturing all six courts to secure the win.
The most tightly contested battle came at No. 1 singles, where Gonzalez pushed Shrikeshav Murugesas to the limit in a marathon match. After splitting the first two sets in tiebreak fashion, the deciding set also went to a breaker, where Murugesas pulled away for a 7-6 (7-5), 5-7, 7-6 (7-1) victory.
Tufts also saw a pair of three-set matches at No. 4 singles, as Sacha Maes battled back to force a deciding super tiebreak before falling 7-5, 5-7, 1-0 (10-6). Several other courts were tightly contested, including a 7-5, 7-6 decision against Andrej Djokic at No. 2 singles.
Chicago's depth ultimately proved decisive, as the Maroons claimed straight-set victories at Nos. 3, 5, and 6 to complete the comeback.
Tufts will take on Azusa Pacific Thursday at 2:30 PM PDT in non-conference play in Azusa, CA.
--JUMBOS--
