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W&M Men’s Tennis Upsets No. 39 Brown, 4-3
Steven Kane Clinches Win for Tribe with Victory at No. 4 Singles
03/31/04 10:01PM
WILLIAMSBURG, VA - William and Mary freshman Steven Kane (Nokomis, FL) came back after being down in his first set at No. 4 singles to win it in a tiebreaker, then came from behind again in the second to win the match and clinch the 53rd ranked Tribe men’s tennis team’s 4-3 upset win over No. 39 Brown this evening at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center.
The win improves W&M’s record to 8-10 on the year, while the Bears drop to 14-5.
The Tribe opened the contest by winning the second and third doubles matches for a 1-0 lead. At No. 2, junior Sean Kelleher (Forty Fort, PA)—recently named the Colonial Athletic Association’s singles player of the week—teamed with sophomore Stephen Ward (Douglaston, NY) to defeat Kris Goddard/Zachary Pasanen, 8-5. It was the sixth win for the duo in their last eight matches. Juniors Alex Fish (Scituate, MA) and Jeff Kader (Geneva, OH) soon followed with a point-clinching, 8-6, win at No. 3 over Ben Brier and Nicholas Goldberg. In the top contest, the Tribe’s 30th ranked team of Kane and senior Geoff Russell (Phoenix, AZ)—named today as the CAA doubles team of the week—just missed the sweep with a 9-8 loss to the 13th ranked team of Jamie Cerretani and Adil Shamasdin.
Brown didn’t give up when the match went to singles, as the Bears won on courts three and five to go ahead 2-1. Kader, the nation’s 35th ranked singles player, tied the score at two with a 7-5, 6-1 win at No. 1 over Goldberg. Fish then put the Tribe one point away from victory with a 6-4, 6-4 win at No. 6 over Pasanen. That set the stage for Kane on court four, who clinched the College’s upset with a 7-6 (5), 6-4 win over Eric Thomas.
“It was great to see the high energy level that our team brought to the match after two upsetting losses last weekend,” said W&M head coach Peter Daub. “These players challenged themselves tonight and responded with a fierce desire to compete. I was extremely proud of each player for giving his best and not letting the season slip away.”
The Green and Gold will look to stay on the winning track with the final home match of the regular season Saturday, April 3 at 6:00 PM against Georgia State on the Busch Tennis Courts.
#53 William and Mary 4, #39 Brown 3
Singles
1. #35 Jeff Kader (W&M) d. Nicholas Goldberg; 7-5, 6-1
2. #56 Jamie Cerretani (BU) d. Sean Kelleher; 6-3, 6-7 (5), 1-0 (10-7)
3. Adil Shamasdin (BU) d. Geoff Russell; 6-2, 6-1
4. Steven Kane (W&M) d. Eric Thomas; 7-6 (5), 6-4
5. Ben Brier (BU) d. Stephen Ward; 6-1, 6-2
6. Alex Fish (W&M) d. Zachary Pasanen; 6-4, 6-4
Order of finish: 3, 5, 1, 6, 4, 2
Doubles
1. #13 Cerretani/Shamasdin (BU) d. #30 Kane/Russell; 9-8
2. Kelleher/Ward (W&M) d. Kris Goddard/Pasanen; 8-5
3. Fish/Kader (W&M) d. Brier/Goldberg; 8-6
Order of finish: 2, 3, 1
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