HANOVER, N.H. – The rematch between No. 19 Columbia and No. 14 Harvard lived up to the hype as the match came down to the wire on Sunday afternoon at the Alexis Boss Tennis Center. The Lions pulled out a gutsy 4-3 win to claim the 2023 ECAC Championship.
With the team score tied, 3-3, No. 14 Michael Zheng led No. 13 Harris Walker in the third set. Up 5-2 in the third set and on the receiving end of the match point, Zheng played a short rally with Walker that ended with a Walker return shot going into the net. Moments later, Zheng was surrounded by the rest of the team as the Lions won the rematch over Harvard.
"I am so proud of our guys," Bidyut K. Goswami Head Coach of Men's Tennis Howard Endelman said. "They showed resilience, toughness, and heart under difficult circumstances in today's match. We are focused every day on continuing to build our program's culture, and as coaches, we are pleased that our players have shown tremendous commitment."
Columbia got the match started by winning the doubles point, which proved to be critical. Alex Kotzen and Roko Horvat worked together in the No. 3 doubles to post a 6-4 win over Valdemar Pape and Daniel Milavsky. Harvard's Ronan Jachuck and Steven Sun responded with a 6-4 win against Theo Winegar and Nicolas Kotzen at the No. 2 spot to even the score. Max Westphal and Zheng stepped up at the No. 1 doubles to win a 6-3 match over Henry Von Der Schulenburg and Walker to secure the doubles point for the Lions.
Nicolas Kotzen extended the Columbia lead to 2-0 to start singles play as he posted a quick 6-2, 6-1 win over Sun in the No. 5 singles. Harvard's Pape put the Crimson on the board for the first time with a 7-6, 6-3 win against Henry Ruger at the No. 6 spot.
Harvard tied the team score, 2-2 as No. 10 Schulenburg earned a 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 win at the No. 2 singles over Horvat. Alex Kotzen responded for the Lions at the No. 3 spot with a 3-6, 6-1, 7-6(5) win against Milavsky. The Crimson answered back again as Jachuck claimed a 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 win over Westphal in the No. 4 singles.
Zheng stepped up in a big way for the second time of the match as he won a three-set thriller in singles play after helping clinch the doubles point for the team. The win improves Columbia's record to 6-1 this season, and avenges the 4-2 loss to Harvard to open the spring schedule. The Lions and Crimson will meet one more time this season on April 16 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
UP NEXT
The Lions take a short break before returning to action on March 3 against No. 22 Northwestern.
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