ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. -- The Brandeis men's tennis team hung on today to defeat New York University, 5-4, in the consolation semifinals at the 2012 University Athletic Association tournament at Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs. With the win, the sixth-seeded Judges advanced to face fifth seed and 30th-ranked Chicago in the fifth-place match, where the Marooons prevailed, 7-2.
In the consolation semis, Brandeis jumped out to a 2-1 lead after doubles action. Senior Ezra Bernstein (Buffalo, N.Y./City Honors School) and junior Dave Yovanoff (Eden, N.Y./Eden) opened with an 8-3 win at No. 1 over Connor Witty and Steven Wu, while juniors Josh Jordan (Northboro, Mass./Algonquin Regional) and Steven Milo (Woodbury, N.Y./Syosset) improved to 2-0 in the tournament with an 8-4 win at No. 2 over Ting Yee Lai and William Smithline. In the third doubles match, the Violets pulled out a late break of serve to give CJ Leong and Bowen Xu a 9-7 win over rookies Michael Secular (Bronx, N.Y./Plant, Fla.) and Alec Siegel (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield).
In singles action, Yovanoff cruised past Leong, 6-0, 6-1, at No. 3 to give the Judges a 3-1 lead. NYU roared back to tie the match at 3-all with wins at No. 2, where Steven Wu defeated Jordan, 6-2, 6-3, and No. 4, where James Dean knocked off Siegel, 6-3, 6-4.
The final three matches all went three sets. Brandeis earned the win as Milo, playing in the top spot, and Secular, at No. 6, both won their matches at nearly the same time. Mile defeated Witty, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, while Secular bounced back from a rough first set to earn a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory to help clinch the match. NYU prevailed in the final match of the day when Tim Wu rallied to defeat Bernstein at No. 5, 2-6, 6-1, 6-3.
The Judges snapped a six-match losing streak with the win to improve to 5-13 on the season. NYU fell to 8-7 with their second loss of the season at the hands of Brandeis.
In the fifth-place match against Chicago, Milo and Jordan solidified their credentials for All-Association honors by moving to 3-0 at the tournament with another 8-4 win over Ankur Bhargava and Deepak Sabada of the Maroons. UC won the other two doubles matches by 8-3 scores to take a 2-1 lead into singles action.
Brandeis picked up a singles point at No. 3, where Yovanoff rallied from a set down against Jan Stefanski, winning 12 of the last 14 games in the match, 2-6, 6-2, 6-0. The Judges fell in two other three-set matches, as Milo couldn't hold on at No. 1, as Troy Brinker won a tiebreaker in the second set and cruised in the third for a 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-0 victory. At No. 4, Siegel couldn't hang on against Alexander Golovin, who took a super-tiebreaker in the third set, 5-7, 6-4, 10-5.
Brandeis finishes its season at 5-14, with nine of their losses coming at the hands of nationally-ranked opponents and two others coming to Division I opponents. The Judges return all but one starter to their top six next season.
CONSOLATION SEMIFINALS
Brandeis 5, NYU 4
Apr 27, 2012 at Altamonte Springs, Fla. (Sanlando Park)
| Singles competition |
| 1. Steven Milo (BRMTEN) def. Connor Witty (NYU) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 |
| 2. Steven Wu (NYU) def. Josh Jordan (BRMTEN) 6-2, 6-3 |
| 3. David Yovanoff (BRMTEN) def. CJ Leong (NYU) 6-0, 6-1 |
| 4. James Dean (NYU) def. Alec Siegel (BRMTEN) 6-3, 6-4 |
| 5. Tim Wu (NYU) def. Ezra Bernstein (BRMTEN) 2-6, 6-1, 6-3 |
| 6. Michael Secular (BRMTEN) def. Ting Yee Lai (NYU) 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 |
| Doubles competition |
| 1. Ezra Bernstein/David Yovanoff (BRMTEN) def. Connor Witty/Steven Wu (NYU) 8-3 |
| 2. Josh Jordan/Steven Milo (BRMTEN) def. Ting Yee Lai/William Smithline (NYU) 8-4 |
| 3. CJ Leong/Bowen Xu (NYU) def. Michael Secular/Alec Siegel (BRMTEN) 9-7 |
| Match Notes |
| NYU 8-7 |
| Brandeis 5-13 |
| 2012 UAA Championship Consolation Semifinal |
FIFTH PLACE MATCH
#30 Chicago 7, Brandeis 2
4/27/2012 at Altamonte Springs, Fla. (Sanlando Park)
| Singles competition |
| 1. Troy Brinker (UCMEN) def. Steven Milo (BRMTEN) 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-0 |
| 2. Ankur Bhargava (UCMEN) def. Josh Jordan (BRMTEN) 7-5, 6-4 |
| 3. David Yovanoff (BRMTEN) def. Jan Stefanski (UCMEN) 2-6, 6-2, 6-0 |
| 4. Alexander Golovin (UCMEN) def. Alec Siegel (BRMTEN) 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (10-5) |
| 5. Zsolt Szabo (UCMEN) def. Ezra Bernstein (BRMTEN) 7-5, 6-2 |
| 6. Deepak Sabada (UCMEN) def. Michael Secular (BRMTEN) 6-0, 6-1 |
| Doubles competition |
| 1. Troy Brinker/Jan Stefanski (UCMEN) def. Ezra Bernstein/David Yovanoff (BRMTEN) 8-3 |
| 2. Josh Jordan/Steven Milo (BRMTEN) def. Ankur Bhargava/Deepak Sabada (UCMEN) 8-4 |
| 3. Krishna Ravella/Zsolt Szabo (UCMEN) def. Michael Secular/Alec Siegel (BRMTEN) 8-3 |
| Match Notes |
| Brandeis 5-14 |
| Chicago 11-9; National ranking #30 |
| 2012 UAA Championship - 5th Place Match |