Results

PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville men's tennis team got its 2011 Freedom Conference schedule off to a good start on a blustery Saturday afternoon in Purchase, as the Valiants topped Eastern University by a 7-2 score at the Manhattanville Courts.

The Valiants received solid contributions from all areas of the lineup to defeat the Eagles, winning at first and third doubles and also taking first singles as well as the bottom four singles flights.

Junior Michael Capozzi (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/San Judas Tadeo) was one of four double winners for the Valiants on the day, teaming with freshman Gabriel Pinto (Quito, Ecuador/Colegio Internacional SEK-Ecuador) for a flawless 8-0 first-doubles win and then holding a 7-5, 3-0 lead when first-singles opponent Michael Roth was forced to retire. Pinto also won his fourth-singles match with ease, taking down Tyler Hoagland with a pair of 6-1 sets.

Further down the ladder, sophomore Andres Rivera and senior Chris Lin (White Plains, N.Y./Eastchester) also combined for three Valiant victories. After teaming up for an 8-4 win at third doubles, Rivera defeated Jonny Shenk at fifth singles, 6-1, 6-4, while Lin dropped just one more game at the sixth flight in a 6-2, 6-4 defeat of Ryan Dykstra.

Manhattanville's seventh point of the day came off the racket of sophomore Karim Mahmoud (Cairo, Egypt/Nefertari American International School), who defeated Dan Wilson by a 6-4, 6-2 score at third singles.

“It was another great win for the team today in difficult conditions,” assistant coach David Slater said. “Although not always at our best, we got the job done and we showed great character in closing out the matches. The doubles team of Capozzi and Pinto are especially producing top-class displays and set the tone for the match today. It's always nice to get the first conference win of the season.”

Manhattanville (5-2, 1-0 Freedom) will step out of conference play on Wednesday afternoon when the Valiants travel to Ramapo College for a 3:30 p.m. start. Eastern (6-4, 1-1 Freedom) will travel to Cabrini College on Thursday at 4 p.m.