JUMBO MEN'S TENNIS FALLS TO BOWDOIN 5-1 IN FIRST ROUND OF NESCAC CHAMPIONSHIP

Senior co-captain Paul Kohnstamm was part of the Tufts win at #3 doubles

MIDDLEBURY, VT - The Bowdoin College men's tennis team advanced to the NESCAC semi-finals with a 5-1 win over Tufts in a first-round match played at Middlebury College on Friday morning.

The Polar Bears (12-5) will take on top-seeded Amherst (29-1) in the semi-finals on Saturday morning at 9:00 am. Tufts' season, its best since 1995-96, ends with an 11-7 record.

Bowdoin carried a 2-1 lead into singles play, with doubles wins at #1 by Stephen Sullivan and Oscar Pena and at #2 by Samuel King and Chris Lord. Senior co-captain Paul Kohnstamm (Larchmont, NY) and junior Sam Laber (Cincinnati, OH) knotched the lone Tufts victory in the match at #3 doubles, 8-6.

Pena picked up another win in singles play for Bowdoin, earning a 6-1, 6-1 victory at #4 over Patrick Monaghan (Chatham, NJ) to make it a 3-1 match. Sullivan had little trouble at #1, giving the Polar Bears a 4-1 advantage with a 6-0, 6-1 win. The match ended soon thereafter, as Lord was a 6-1, 6-2 victor in the #3 slot.

The Polar Bears were up a set at #5 and #6 when play was stopped, while Tufts' Andrew Lutz (Baltimore, MD) took the first set over King at #2 singles.

Coach Jim Watson's Jumbos won 11 matches this season, the most for the program since the 1995-96 season. This was their first NESCAC Championship appearance since the tournament went to a six-team format in 2006.

Doubles
1. Stephen Sullivan/Oscar Pena (B) def. Kai Victoria/Andrew Lutz (T) 8-3
2. Samuel King/Chris Lord (B) def. Morrie Bossen/Mark Westerfield (T) 8-4
3. Paul Kohnstamm/Sam Laber (T) def. Kent Winningham/Raouf Grissa (B) 8-6

Singles
1. Sullivan (B) def. Victoria (T) 6-0, 6-1
2. Lutz (T) led King (B) 6-4, 0-1 (DNF)
3. Lord (B) def. Ben Barad (T) 6-1, 6-2
4. Pena (B) def. Patrick Monaghan (T) 6-1, 6-1
5. Casey Grinden (B) led Austin Blau (T) 6-4, 1-0 (DNF)
6. Michael Power (B) led Laber (T) 7-5, 1-0 (DNF)

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