PRINCETON, N.J. – After falling in the opening round at the ECAC Championships on Friday, Harvard men's tennis (8-5) bounced back with a pair of wins over Dartmouth (7-3) and Yale (7-3) on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. 

How it Happened vs. Dartmouth

The Crimson got back in the win column on Saturday in a big way, sweeping Dartmouth, 4-0.  Beginning in doubles, Kolos Kincses and Rohan Murali blanked Malhar Patel and Calvin Wang at the No. 2 spot.  James MacDonald and Masato Perera then secured Harvard's double point with a 6-3 win on court three.

Harvard carried its momentum into singles, winning the first set on every court.  Murali delivered first, dropping Kornel Halmos (Dartmouth) with a pair of 6-1 sets. 

Nathan Blokhin trailed closely behind to pull the Crimson within a point of clinching, posting a 6-4, 6-2 win over Adrian Tracey on court three. 

Mitchell Lee delivered the final blow, defeating Yujiro Onuma (Dartmouth), 7-5, 6-2 on court five. 

Results vs. Dartmouth

Harvard – 4, Dartmouth – 0
Doubles

1. Benjamin Privara/Nathan Blokhin (Harvard) vs. Miles Groom/Henry Ren (Dartmouth), 5-4 DNF
2. Kolos Kincses/Rohan Murali (Harvard) def. Malhar Patel/Calvin Wang (Dartmouth), 6-0
3. James MacDonald/Masato Perera (Harvard) def. Denny Bao/Kornel Halmos (Dartmouth), 6-3

Order of finish: 2, 3
Singles

1. Benjamin Privara (Harvard) vs. Henry Ren (Dartmouth), 7-6 (7), 2-0 DNF
2. No. 34 Rohan Murali (Harvard) def. Kornel Halmos (Dartmouth), 6-1, 6-1
3. No. 27 Nathan Blokhin (Harvard) def. Adrian Tracey (Dartmouth), 6-4, 6-2
4. Masato Perera (Harvard) vs. Miles Groom (Dartmouth), 6-1, 4-6, 0-2 DNF
5. Mitchell Lee (Harvard) def. Yujiro Onuma (Dartmouth), 7-5, 6-2
6. Marc Ktiri (Harvard) vs. Leo Pade (Dartmouth), 6-4, 5-3

Order of finish: 2, 3, 5

How it Happened vs. Yale

For the first time in eight matches, the Crimson dropped the doubles point but it quickly got on board in singles.  Blokhin delivered his second straight set win in as many days, defeating Jason Shuler (Yale), 6-3, 6-1. 

Masato Perera and Marc Ktiri then added their own straight set wins on court four and six, respectively, to give the Crimson a 3-1 lead.

A win on court one gave the Bulldogs their second point of the day but Rohan Murali ultimately sealed the match for the Crimson.  After falling 6-2 in the first set, the No. 34 nationally ranked singles player responded with a 7-5 second set and a dominant 6-1 third set to defeat Edward Liao (Yale). 

Results vs. Yale

Harvard – 4, Yale – 2
Doubles

1. No. 14 Vignesh Gogineni/Edward Liao (Yale) def. Benjamin Privara/Nathan Blokhin (Harvard), 6-3
2. Kolos Kincses/Rohan Murali (Harvard) def. Jason Shuler/Dylan Tsoi (Yale), 6-2
3. Eric Li/Ethan Chung (Yale) def. Masato Perera/James MacDonald (Harvard), 6-4

Order of finish: 2, 1, 3
Singles

1. No. 48 Vignesh Gogineni (Yale) def. Benjamin Privara (Harvard), 7-6 (6), 6-3
2. No. 34 Rohan Murali (Harvard) def. Edward Liao (Yale), 2-6, 7-5, 6-1
3. No. 27 Nathan Blokhin (Harvard) def. Jason Shuler (Yale), 6-3, 6-1
4. Masato Perera (Harvard) def. Jim Ji (Yale), 6-4, 6-4
5. Mitchell Lee (Harvard) vs. Ethan Chung (Yale), 6-4, 5-7, 3-4 DNF
6. Marc Ktiri (Harvard) def. Varun Verma (Yale), 6-4, 6-3

Order of finish: 3, 6, 4, 1, 2

Next Up

Following a two-week, break Harvard will return home to face a ranked Pepperdine team and Bryant in a Sunday doubleheader on March 1.