POUGHKEEPSEE, N.Y.- The Brandeis men's tennis team continued its strong start to the season yesterday, picking up a 7-2 win at Vassar College. The Judges are now 3-1 on the season, and are ranked No. 15 in the Northeast. The Brewers, ranked No. 11 in the region, fall to 5-3.
Brandeis came out of the gates strong, sweeping the doubles matches. The closest match was at No. 1, where rookie Michael Arguello (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood) and sophomore Danny Lubarsky (Cleveland, Ohio/Hawken School) won a tiebreaker against Vassar sophomores Daniel Cooper and Christian Phelps, 9-8(5). Arguello and Lubarsky fought off four match points at 7-8.
Junior Alec Siegel (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) and rookie Jeff Cherkin (Melville, N.Y./Half Hollow Hills east) won, 8-3, at No. 2 doubles. Rookie Brian Granoff (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep) and junior Michael Secular (Bronx, N.Y./Plant, Fla.) comfortably claimed No. 3 doubles, 8-1.
The singles matches were all tight, but the Judges claimed four of the six for the 7-2 win.
Granoff overcame a first-set loss to win, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 at No. 2 singles. Secular had an equally close win at No. 5. The junior won a first-set tiebreaker, 7-6(7) before dropping the second set, 2-6. Secular rallied for a 6-4 win in the third set for the clinching point.
Siegel and Cherkin won in straight sets at No. 4 and 6, respectively. Siegel defeated Christian Lyon, 7-5, 6-3. Cherkin bested Juan Laso, 6-2, 7-5.
Cooper and Phelps got their revenge against Arguello and Lubarsky in singles. Cooper defeated Arguello at No. 1, 6-4, 6-2. Phelps bested Lubarsky at No. 3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.
The Judges are back in action next weekend, when they will compete in the Middlebury Invitational in Vermont.