The Princeton Tigers wrapped up a successful showing at the Farnsworth Invitational this past weekend, hosting UNC, Rice, Texas A&M, and Washington. The Invitational was held at the newly inaugurated Racquet Center at the Meadows Campus — a facility that serves as an example of how Princeton athletics will be affected by campus expansion. Featuring standout singles wins and hard-fought matches, Princeton demonstrated their depth across three intense days.
An Event Honoring a Princeton Legend
Named in memory of Ted Farnsworth ’84 — an All-American and former Top Gun pilot who passed away in a training accident at age 31 — the Farnsworth Invitational holds special significance for Princeton tennis.
“I have heard nothing but incredible things about his remarkable contributions to Princeton,” Head Coach Billy Pate told The Daily Princetonian about Farnworth. “His teammates always speak highly of his skill as a player, but even more so as a leader. We feel it’s important to recognize his legacy by hosting an event each fall in his honor.”
This year’s invitational also marked a new era for the Tigers as the event took place at the new Meadows Campus’ Racquet Center, which coach Pate praised as “one of the top indoor/outdoor college venues in the country.”
“This allows us to attract the best and brightest players while being able to showcase our players in national caliber events and dual matches,” Pate told the ‘Prince.’ “Even for a fall individual event, we had a great crowd. Friday night’s set of matches against UNC under the lights felt like a dual match.”
The debut of this state-of-the-art center was matched with Tiger success on the court.
Day one: A strong start against UNC
Friday’s opening matches saw Princeton claim ten wins against a formidable UNC Chapel Hill team. Sophomore Landon Ardila and first-year Meecah Bigun cruised to an 8–2 victory over UNC’s Wright and Djakouris. First-year Milan Markovits and senior Matthew Bosancic also contributed a solid 8–5 win, setting the tone for the rest of the tournament.
In singles, No. 11 ranked sophomore Paul Inchauspe and junior Fnu Nidunjianzan — two of Princeton’s top ranked players — lived up to high expectations. Inchauspe emerged victorious in a tight three-set match against Logan Zapp 7–6, 3–6, 6–3, while Nidunjianzan defeated Vladislav Melnic 6–3, 6–4. Notable victories came from Markovits, who took down UNC’s Perumou 6–4, 7–6, and sophomore Evan Wen, who rounded out the day with a powerful comeback, winning his singles match against Nick Mangiapana 4–6, 6–3, 6–0.
“I was definitely struggling a bit to find my game in the first match with the nerves of playing our first match in our new facility,” Wen told the ‘Prince,’ “but after finding form, [I] felt very strong through the rest of the weekend.”
Ardila, Nidunjianzan, and Markovits each secured victories in both singles and doubles.
Day two: Ranked wins against Texas A&M and Washington
Day two saw the Tigers take on Texas A&M and Washington with Inchauspe and Nidunjianzan’s ranked wins serving as highlights. Inchauspe edged out Washington’s No. 92 Dzianis Zharyn in three sets, showcasing his endurance with a 2–6, 7–6, 6–3 victory. Nidunjianzan also continued his streak, defeating Texas A&M’s No. 112 Luke Casper in straight sets, 6–4, 7–5.
While the doubles matches proved challenging on day two, Princeton’s Markovits and Bosancic continued to excel, picking up an 8–6 victory over Washington’s Suko and Belday. Despite some setbacks, Princeton’s singles lineup kept them in the spotlight. Junior Ellis Short outplayed A&M’s Tiago Pires in a dominant 6–2, 6–3 win, while Wen added another singles victory to his name, defeating Ritesh Patil of Texas A&M in straight sets, 7–6, 6–3.
“We have a lot of options with our doubles teams,” Pate said. “We have one team — Paul Inchauspe and Filippos Astreinidis — [who have] already qualified for the NCAA doubles championships … We are constantly practicing with different tandems to see what clicks.”
Day three: Closing strong against Rice
Sunday marked an emphatic end to Princeton’s run at the Farnsworth Invitational as they swept Rice in singles and secured two doubles victories to punctuate a successful weekend. Inchauspe, Nidunjianzan, and Wen all remained undefeated in singles play, capping off an impressive weekend for the Tigers.
In doubles, Nidunjianzan and Short battled through a tight match, ultimately defeating Rice’s Arthur de la Bassetiere and Santiago Navarro 8–7, while senior Filippos Astreinidis and Bosancic clinched an 8–3 victory. Ardila, Short, senior Aidan Mahoney, and sophomore Aleksandar Mitric all delivered straight-set singles wins, emphasizing Princeton’s depth across the lineup.
Coach Pate noted that while the Tigers showed impressive depth, there’s always room for improvement, especially in doubles play.
“I feel like we had a bit stronger weekend in singles than we did in doubles, but we also faced great competition. Texas A&M will likely be a top 10 team in the country, and they played well against us in doubles,” Pate explained. “Nonetheless, we had a very successful weekend, and facing off against some of the nation’s best players allows us to grow as a team.”
“We came out with a win against every school, so we are feeling very confident going into the season all our players are in form and only getting better,” Wen reflected to the ‘Prince.’ “[It] gives us hope to take a NCAA title home over the next few years with our current core.”
With Princeton’s fall season nearing its close, the team’s dominant showing at the Farnsworth Invitational bodes well for the spring and marked an exciting start for its new facility across Lake Carnegie.
Ark Bunyan is a Sports contributor and a contributing Audience creator for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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