Men's Tennis Extends Win Streak to Four with Wins over Brown, Yale

This weekend, the No. 48 Harvard men’s tennis team (16-10, 4-2 Ivy) extended its winning streak to four, hosting Yale (12-12, 0-6) on Friday and traveling to Brown (8-18, 0-6) on Sunday. With its 4-2 in-conference record, the Crimson ranks fourth in the Ivy League.

“It feels great to get these four wins in a row under our belt,” co-Captain Nicky Hu said. “The team really deserves it and I'm happy they were able to perform up to their capabilities over the past couple of weeks. We are still at the mercy of the rankings but if things go our way... we should have a small chance to make it into NCAAs this year.”

HARVARD 5, BROWN 2

The Bears took an early lead with a win at first doubles, but Harvard came back to even the score with a 6-0 win at second doubles from co-Captain Nicky Hu and senior Kelvin Lam. For the deciding point, co-captain Conor Haughey and freshman Andy Zhou eked out their opponents in a tiebreaker to give the Crimson the doubles victory.

“Honestly the aura around this team right now is electric. People are more motivated than ever and finally playing up to their talents,” Hu said.

On the singles side, since Brown only had four indoor courts available, the players at fourth and fifth singles had to wait until other matches had finished to start. As a result, the team had to adjust to extra wait-time and interrupted momentum.

“I think it took some time for people to adjust to the courts, but a lot of our guys did really well to cope with this environment,” Zhou said.

Harvard and Brown split the top four spots, with the Bears claiming victories at first and second singles while sophomore Kenny Tao and Lam earned points for the Crimson at third and fourth singles.

In the second round of singles matches, sophomore Jean Thirouin solidified Harvard’s victory with a straight-set win at sixth singles. At fifth, Zhou dropped his first set 6-2, but managed to come back in the second set and ultimately take the third set for a decisive 5-2 win.

“I’m used to transitioning immediately from doubles to singles, and my opponent was playing really well so that was reflected in my first set. But I was able to adjust, and I was lucky enough to come away with a few extra points than he did,” Zhou said.

HARVARD 5, YALE 2

In front of an energetic home crowd Friday evening, the Crimson earned its third-straight Ivy win with a 5-2 sweep of the Bulldogs.

“I think everyone played really well and having that support and atmosphere made it a really enjoyable experience. It was perfect,” Zhou said.

Harvard took an early lead by claiming the doubles point. Hu and junior Brian Yeung dominated first doubles for a handy 6-2 victory, while junior Sebastian Beltrame and Thirouin managed to edge out their opponents 7-5.

Going into the singles competition, Harvard continued to widen its lead. Thirouin found success on the courts again at sixth singles, taking a quick 6-2, 6-1 win. Lam finished close behind in another straight-set victory, fending off his opponent with a tiebreaker win in the second set.

After dropping the first set 6-4, Beltrame fought back to take the next two sets 6-3, 6-2 for a victory at second singles. Zhou also found victory in a close three-set match. After taking the first set and dropping the second, Zhou managed to close out the third set with a tiebreaker win.

Harvard’s only losses of the day were at first and fifth singles. Yale sophomore Ziqi Wang edged Hu out in a tiebreaker first set before claiming the next set 6-4 at first singles. At fifth singles, after dropping the first set, freshman Christopher Morrow managed to push his second set to a tiebreaker, but failed to nab the win.

“If we can get one more [win] and sneak into NCAAs, I think we will have the momentum on our side and anything can happen. Nothing would make me happier than to see the guys on the team compete in the postseason this year,” Hu said.

—Staff writer Jamie Chen can be reached at jamiechen@college.harvard.edu