Coast Guard Sneaks Past Vassar Men’s Tennis

NEW LONDON, CT – Host Coast Guard Academy took two of the three doubles points, which proved to be the difference as the Vassar College men’s tennis team dropped a 5-4 non-conference decision Saturday on the road.

The Brewers (5-4) fell behind early in doubles, as Kyle Foger and Chris Lansing earned an 8-3 lead at No. 2 doubles to start the scoring over freshman David Gandham and junior Nick Zuczek. CGA doubled its lead with an 8-4 victory at No. 3, as Michael Melanpy and Jack Phillips bested junior Jamie Anderson and sophomore Dom Demeterfi.

Vassar would get on the board though at No. 1 doubles in a thrilling match, as sophomore Jeremy Auh and freshman Adam Krueger won their third straight triumph and eighth of the season thanks to a 10-8 win in the tiebreak to capture the 9-8 (8) victory at the top position.

CGA pushed its lead back up to two at 3-1 as Thomas Hackett posted a 6-3, 6-4 win over Krueger at No. 1 singles. The host Bears (2-0) moved to within one match of the team victory at No. 3 singles, as Melampy fought off Auh to win a thriller in a third-set breaker 12-10 to earn the 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (10) win.

Vassar didn’t go away though, staying alive thanks to another three-set victory from Gandham, who has now five of his last six singles matches at No. 2. Gandham took the early edge with a 6-3 win in the opening set, but John Hu of Coast Guard rallied for a 7-5 second set win. In the third set, the two were deadlocked at 6-6 but Gandham earned the 7-3 win in tie-break to take the match and make the team score 4-2.

VC pulled to within one of the Bears with another three-set victory, this time coming from Anderson at No. 4 singles. For Anderson, it was his first three-setter of the season, as he pushed back from a first-set deficit to take a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 win to move to 4-2 this spring.
The clinching point would come with the next finish though, as CGA chalked up a win at No. 5 singles behind a 6-2, 7-6 (7) win by Foger over Vassar junior Nick Lee. Sophomore Zamir Birnbach pushed his 2017-18 record to 3-1 with a victory at No. 6, as he led 6-4, 4-6, 2-0 before his opponent Arthur Wicke was forced to retire.

Vassar is off until next Sunday, traveling to California for the first of four matches on the West Coast, taking on CalTech at Mission Hills Country Club March 11 at 1 p.m. Pacific Standard Time in Rancho Mirage, CA.

Coast Guard 5, Vassar College 4
Mar 03, 2018 at New London, Conn.

Singles competition
1. Tom Hackett (CGA) def. Adam Krueger (VCMT) 6-2, 6-4
2. David Gandham (VCMT) def. John Hu (CGA) 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (7-3)
3. Mike Melampy (CGA) def. Jeremy Auh (VCMT) 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (12-10)
4. Jamie Anderson (VCMT) def. Adam Bahney (CGA) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
5. Kyle Fager (CGA) def. Nick Lee (VCMT) 6-2, 7-6 (9-7)
6. Zamir Birnbach (VCMT) def. Arthur Wicke (CGA) 6-4, 4-6, 2-0, retired

Doubles competition
1. Adam Krueger/Jeremy Auh (VCMT) def. Tom Hackett/Adam Bahney (CGA) 9-8 (10-8)
2. Kyle Fager/Chris Lansing (CGA) def. David Gandham/Nick Zuczek (VCMT) 8-3
3. Mike Melampy/Jack Phillips (CGA) def. Jamie Anderson/Dom Demeterfi (VCMT) 8-4