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Jake Mrozewski | Phoenix Staff

Zak Kelm reaches for an overhead shot in the Mullan Tennis Center. Kelm’s 6-4, 6-4 victory at No. 3 singles helped the Garnet to a 7-2 win against Washington on Tuesday.

BY MADDIE WILLIAMS

In print | Published April 9, 2009

The Swarthmore men’s tennis racked up another win against the Washington College Shoremen on Tuesday, bringing their Centennial Conference record to 4-1. The Garnet’s overall record broke even at 6-6 with the win.

On Sunday, April 5, Swarthmore fell to Johns Hopkins University (6-3, 4-0 CC) in their only Centennial Conference loss thus far, by a final score of 7-2.

The Blue Jays are ranked #13 nationally, and although the final result seems to indicate a decisive Hopkins win, many of the matches were close.

Additionally, Swarthmore did garner a few notable individual wins. Zak Kelm ’12 continued a personal winning streak, taking down Hopkins freshman Warren Elgort in three sets.

Kelm, along with his doubles partner Kevin Shaughnessy ’09, were victorious at No. 1 doubles over Hopkins’ second-ranked All-American doubles pair of David Maldow and Andrew Wang, coming away with the upset and a final score of 8-4.

Hopkins aside, the Garnet has been making easy work of its other Centennial Conference opponents.

Against the Muhlenberg College Mules on Wednesday, April 1, Swarthmore left no questions about the strength of their team unanswered, dominating the match, which resulted in a final score of 9-0.
In doubles action, Kelm and Shaughnessy shut out the opposing pair, winning 8-0.

In singles play, Stephen Youngblood ’12 handily beat his opponent at the No. 1 spot, with two 6-1 sets. Max Bressman ’12 shut out his Muhlenberg challenger, not surrendering a single game with a pair of 6-0 sets.

On the road on Saturday, Swarthmore defeated the Gettysburg College Bullets in an 8-1 contest, despite less-than-favorable conditions.

With 40 to 50 mph gusts interspersed amongst a constant 30 mph wind, finding a rhythm was a challenge for both squads.
“For most of the team, it was the windiest conditions we had ever played in,” said Shaughnessy.

Despite the weather, Garnet victories were certainly not in short supply that Saturday. Mark Wee ’11 secured a victory in three sets during singles play, along with four of his teammates. Swarthmore swept the doubles play with three solid wins.

Against Washington College, the Swarthmore team once again demonstrated the strength of its doubles play, posting three victories in three matches.

Youngblood lost a heartbreaker at No. 1 singles, falling in three sets to Washington sophomore Adam Cranford, 6-7, 6-3, 14-12.

But Swarthmore was able to win the match on the strength of the doubles victories, combined with singles victories by Shaughnessy, Kelm, Mark Greenburg ’09 and JJ England ’09.

Kelm’s victory on Tuesday was his fifth singles victory in Centennial Conference matches this year, boosting his in-conference record to 5-0.

Playing at No. 3 singles for the Garnet, Kelm’s success is a testament to the depth of the Swarthmore squad.

Having such consistency at third-singles indicates Swarthmore’s ability to field several top-level players, while other squads may have to go to second string behind their No. 1 and No. 2 standouts.

Looking ahead, the team continues to set its sights on a Conference playoff bid. “As a team, we are very confident right now,” Shaughnessy said, adding that the Garnet are “looking forward to playing Haverford next week.”

One area the team and head coach Mike Mullan have focused on recently is doubles play. “Winning all of the doubles or even two out of the three matches really provides momentum going into singles play,” continued Shaughnessy, who noted that coaching doubles is an area of expertise for Mullan.

Mullan has coached the Swarthmore men’s tennis team for 31 seasons. During his playing days, he occupied the #2 singles and #1 doubles spots at the University of California at Berkley, once securing a bid to the U.S. Open.

Indeed, his experience is a valuable resource for the Garnet hitters as they chase a conference championship.

The Swarthmore men, currently ranked 12th in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Atlantic South rankings, will next travel to face Ursinus College (2-8, 0-3 CC) in another Centennial Conference matchup, on Saturday, April 11 at 1 p.m.

Disclosure Note: Sports Columnist Josh Abel is a member of the men’s tennis team but had no role in the production of this article.

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