Emory Men's Tennis Falls To Amherst In NCAA D-III Championships Match

The No. 1-ranked Emory men's tennis team saw its quest for a national crown come to an end Thursday evening as it came out on the short end of a 5-2 decision to No. 2-ranked Amherst College in the title match of the NCAA Division III Championships.  The match took place at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center in Claremont, California.  Emory closes out the year with an overall record of 24-4 while Amherst finishes with a 36-1 ledger.

Emory saw itself staring at a 2-1 deficit after the doubles action.  The Lord Jeffs No. 3 tandem of Chris Dale and Mark Kahan drew first blood with an 8-4 decision over the Eagles’ Dillon Pottish and Colin Egan. The setback ended a seven-match win streak for the Eagles’ duo and was just their fourth setback in 26 decisions this spring.  Shortly after, Amherst upped its advantage to 2-0 when Moritz Koenig and Wes Waterman topped Emory’s Ayush Bajoria and Noah Simonson, 8-4, at the No. 2 spot.  Emory recorded its first point at No. 1 when juniors Chris Goodwin and Will Humphreys bolted out to a 5-2 advantage and then held on for a vital 9-7 triumph over a determined Austin Chafetz and Luis Rattenhuber.

With some of its singles contingent playing at less than full strength, the Eagles quickly fell into a 4-1 hole with the Lord Jeffs posting victories at the No. 4 and No. 3 positions, respectively.  Pottish kept Emory’s hopes alive with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Rattenhuber at No.1, however Amherst closed out the match and came away the national championship when Mark Kahan notched a 6-2, 6-3 decision over Goodwin at No. 2.     

With the team title decided, Emory will send four players into the singles and doubles portion of the Championships that begins on Friday.  Pottish, Goodwin and Colin Egan will be part of the 32-team singles field while Goodwin and Humphreys will compete in doubles.

Emory’s runner-up finish is its fifth over the past 12 seasons with the program winning national titles in 2003 and 2006.