Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Chicago
Northwestern Dominates Chicago, 7-0
1/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Jan. 18, 2009
EVANSTON, Ill. -- The Northwestern Wildcats posted their second dual victory of the day with a 7-0 sweep of the University of Chicago Maroons on Sunday at Combe Tennis Center. Combined with their sweep of Butler earlier Sunday afternoon, the `Cats finished with a 17-1 combined singles and doubles record.
NU started off by capturing the doubles point, sweeping all three matches in convincing fashion.
At No. 2 doubles, the Wildcat tandem of Alex Sanborn (Houston, Texas/Kinkaid) and Joshua Graves (Milwaukee, Wis./Nicolet) posted an 8-3 victory over the Maroons' Jan Stefanski and Lado Bakhutashvili. After exchanging breaks of serve, the 'Cats took the lead at 4-3 and never looked back, winning the match off a Graves backhand volley winner.
For the second time today, the doubles point was clinched by Alexander Thams (Stockholm, Sweden/Enskilda Gymnasiet) and Eric Spector (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) at No. 3. The pair defeated Chicago's Will Zhang and Troy Brinker, 8-2.
Tobias Reitz (Reinbeck, Germany/Sachsenwaldschule Reinbeck) and Marc Dwyer (Peachtree City, Ga./University of Nebraska-Independent Study H.S.) paired at No. 1 doubles for an 8-4 win over the Maroons' Garrett Brinker and Steve Saltarelli. The 'Cats had a quick 5-1 start before the Maroons fought back to almost even the score at 5-4. The rally was short-lived as Reitz and Dwyer pulled out the remaining three points to clinch the NU sweep of doubles.
The six singles matches were more of the same as the Wildcats won them all in straight sets. Only two Wildcats allowed their opponents more than four games in a set.
Junior captain Alex Sanborn sealed the first singles point for the Wildcats with a dismantling of Chicago's Garrett Brinker at No. 2 singles, 6-0, 6-2. Sophomore Andrew McCarthy quickly followed at No. 5 singles with an identical score, defeating the Maroons' Mark Bonner and giving the 'Cats a 3-0 lead in the dual.
Sophomore Peter Rispoli (Naples, Fla./St. Stephen's(Texas)) clinched the dual for the Wildcats with his 6-1, 6-1 victory at No. 4 singles over Jan Stefanski.
Alexander Thams continued the Wildcats' solid play with a 6-1, 6-3 victory at No. 1 singles over the Maroons' Will Zhang.
Senior Philip Kafka (Dallas, Texas/Greenhill) won his match at No. 6 singles easily, 6-2, 6-0 over Chicago's Paul Namkoong.
The last match on the court was No. 2 doubles between senior Dwyer and the Maroons' Bakhutashvili. Dwyer pulled out the victory by breaking Bakhutashvili to go up 5-4 in the second set and then served out the match for a 6-4, 6-4 victory.
The Wildcats next face IUPUI and Western Illinois at Combe Tennis Center on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 12 p.m. and 6 p.m., respectively.
