Tennis: Tigers fall 1 match short of league title

During the fall, both teams competed in individual tournaments and dual matches to practice and refine their skills before conference play began in the spring. The men’s team saw sophomore Matija Pecotic build on his successful rookie campaign, as he reached the finals of the International Tennis Association Regional Tournament in singles before falling to Binghampton’s Sven Vloedgraven 6-2, 5-7, 6-0. Princeton also sent the doubles pair of freshman Augie Bloom and sophomore Matt Spindler to the finals, in which they were defeated by Alistair Felton and Andy Nguyen of Harvard, 8-3. The women’s team also sent a doubles pair to the finals in the ITA Regional Tournament. Junior Hilary Bartlett and senior Taylor Marable won their first five doubles matches before falling to Yale’s Vicky Brook and Lindsay Clark in the finals, 8-4.

After a series of tough spring break matches in San Diego, the men’s and women’s teams opened conference play at the end of March. Both teams pulled out tight 4-3 victories over Penn, with Bloom coming up big for the men’s team to win a clinching three-set battle and Marable clinching the match for the women. During the following weekend, the men continued to finish close matches strongly, defeating Brown 4-3 after sophomore Matt Siow outlasted Kendrick Au 6-1, 3-6, 7-6(11), and overcoming Yale 4-3. After falling 6-1 to Brown, the women bounced back to defeat then-No. 29 Yale 5-2.

Unwilling to fold in pressure situations, the men’s team continued its run of 4-3 victories, with freshman Dan Richardson clinching the match over Dartmouth and Pecotic clinching the match over Harvard. The women fell to Dartmouth 4-3 before topping Harvard 4-3 behind freshman Katherine Flanigan’s clinching match.

Off to their best conference start since 1992, the men entered the final weekend of Ivy League play undefeated and with a championship in their sights. In the final home match of the year, the men defeated Columbia 5-2 behind Bloom’s come-from-behind 6-3, 6-7(3), 7-6(7) victory over John Yetimoglu. This victory kept Princeton undefeated and set up a showdown in Ithaca, N.Y., with the undefeated Cornell for the Ivy League championship. The Tigers fell in a close 4-3 decision, and the Big Red clinched its first Ivy League title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Princeton finished second in the Ivy League.

The women ended their season on a strong note, defeating Columbia 4-3 before beating Cornell 6-1. Princeton finished third in the conference behind Yale and Dartmouth, and its 5-2 record marks the eighth straight winning conference season for the women’s team. Bartlett was named first-team All-Ivy at singles for her third straight year, while she joined Marable for first-team All-Ivy at doubles.

While the men ended up one match short of an undefeated Ivy League season and an NCAA Tournament berth, the season was by no means a failure. Princeton saw the emergence of a strong freshman class, including Bloom, who was named second-team All-Ivy and finished conference play with a 6-1 record in singles. The Tigers also continued to get solid contributions from their sophomore class, especially as Pecotic developed into a star. He completely dominated league play, finishing undefeated in number one singles while dropping only two sets. Because of his performance, Pecotic was named the Ivy League Player of the Year.

Pecotic attributes his success to a change in mindset and having a year of experience under his belt.

“One thing was to accept defeat with the same attitude that I would accept a win — to just stay in the moment — whereas last year I think I was focusing on the wrong things at the wrong time,” Pecotic said. “Also, I have familiarity with everything — with the season, with close matches.”

Pecotic expects next season to be another grind, but if everyone puts in hard work, the team should challenge for the conference title.

“We’re going to start from square one again in the fall,” Pecotic said. “The potential is definitely there, especially with this new top freshman coming in, Zack McCourt, one of the best recruits in the nation. It’s going to come down to who’s more motivated, who’s more disciplined and who’s going to go for the shots in the right moments.”

With its depth and youth, the men’s team looks to have a bright future and a league championship is certainly within its sights.