CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – No. 12 Harvard men's tennis (22-6, 6-1 Ivy) dropped No. 22 Michigan State, 4-0, to advance to the 2024 NCAA Sweet 16, this afternoon in front of a packed Beren Tennis Center.
After having not reached the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2004, the Crimson have now punched its ticket to the Sweet 16 for the second straight year. Following the match,
Andrew Rueb '95, the Scott Mead '77 Head Coach for Harvard Men's Tennis, said, "I'm so proud of the team today. Everyone brought their A-game and competed with great heart. I want to thank Sanam and Juan, the support staff, our alums, and the HMT fan base who came out in full force. There is nothing that makes me prouder than seeing 600 screaming fans in the Beren Tennis Center. We are excited to go back to Kentucky and get another shot at the Wildcats."
How it Happened
In a doubles point thriller, the Crimson came out on top by grabbing tight victories at the No. 1 and 3 spots. After falling at the No. 2 spot,
Masato Perera and
Alan Yim powered to a tiebreaker victory, 7-6 (4), to get Harvard on the board.
Daniel Milavsky and
Cooper Williams then came roaring back against the No. 65 nationally ranked duo, to clinch the doubles point for the Crimson with a 7-5 decision.
Moving into singles action, Milavsky quickly took care of his opponent with a 6-4, 6-2 straight set victory.
Ronan Jachuck followed closely behind with a near identical, 6-3, 6-2 win over Sebastien Collard (Michigan State) to pull the Crimson within a victory of clinching.
As several Crimson neared victories,
Masato Perera ultimately clinched the match defeating David Saye (Michigan State), 6-3, 6-4, at the No. 6 spot.
Harvard Highlights
- The Crimson clinch its spot in the Sweet 16 for the second consecutive year. Harvard has now defeated both its opening round opponents in sweeping fashion in back-to-back seasons. Prior to last year's Sweet 16 birth, Harvard has not returned to the second weekend of NCAA Tournament since 2004.
- Harvard's 22 wins so far this season marks the most for the program with Andrew Rueb '95, the Scott Mead '77 Head Coach for Harvard Men's Tennis, at the helm.
- Harvard continues to utilize its home court advantage, remaining perfect at home this season with a 15-0 record.
- Milavsky completes a perfect 4-0 weekend across singles and doubles play with his pair of wins this afternoon. The junior now has 21 singles wins and 29 doubles victories in 2023-24.
- Jachuck and Perera become the third and fourth Crimson to eclipse 15 singles wins in 2023-24 with their victories today.
Results
Harvard – 4, Michigan State – 0
Doubles
- No. 19 Daniel Milavsky/Cooper Williams (Harvard) def. No. 65 Ozan Baris/Aristotelis Thanos (Michigan State), 7-5
- Taym Al-Azmeh/Ronald Hohmann (Michigan State) def. Melchior Delloye/Ronan Jachuck (Harvard), 6-4
- Masato Perera/Alan Yim (Harvard) def. Graydon Lair/Max Sheldon (Michigan State), 7-6 (4)
Order of finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles
- No. 15 Cooper Williams (Harvard) vs. No. 9 Ozan Baris (Michigan State), DNF 6-3, 5-5
- No. 66 Henry von der Schulenburg (Harvard) vs. No. 53 Ronald Hohmann (Michigan State), DNF 3-6, 6-3, 2-3
- Daniel Milavsky (Harvard) def. Aristotelis Thanos (Michigan State), 6-4, 6-2
- Ronan Jachuck (Harvard) def. Sebastien Collard (Michigan State), 6-3, 6-2
- Rohan Murali (Harvard) vs. Max Sheldon (Michigan State), DNF 7-5, 4-2
- Masato Perera (Harvard) def. David Saye (Michigan State), 6-3, 6-4
Order of finish: 3, 4, 6
Next Up
With the victory, the Crimson advances to its second straight Sweet 16 and awaits the winner of No. 29 Illinois versus No. 5 Kentucky.
