2006 NEWMAC MEN'S TENNIS TOURNAMENT - MIT wins eighth successive title following 4-1 victory at Wheaton

April 29, 2006

NORTON, MA- The top-seeded Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) men's tennis team won its eighth New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament championship in the league's eight-year history following Saturday's 4-1 finals victory at number two Wheaton College on the Clark Tennis Courts.

The Engineers, who are ranked 17th nationally according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), improved to 12-2 overall. Wheaton, which became the first team to score against MIT in tournament competition, entered the match ranked 25th in the country and fell to 11-6. The Engineers are 16-0 in tournament play and have outscored those teams by a 68-1 margin.

Meeting the Lyons in the conference tournament final for the second straight season and third time since 2000, MIT took the doubles point by securing 8-3 and 8-5 wins in the first and third slots, respectively. Senior Evan Tindell (Boca Raton, FL/Boca Raton) and junior Thomas Dohlman (Wellesley, MA/Wellesley) were victorious in the top slot, while senior Said Francis (Jounieh, Lebanon/Lycee Nahr-Ibrahim) and sophomore Jonathan Farm (Honolulu, HI/Punahou School) won at number three.

Wheaton juniors Brian Danishevsky (Hamden, CT/Hamden Hall Country Day School) and Brad Dressler (Cranston, RI/Cranston West) held a narrow 8-7 edge over junior Mark Egan (Chapel Hill, NC/East Chapel Hill) and sophomore Eric Beren (Dallas, TX/Lake Highlands) at second doubles but didn't finish due to the doubles point already being decided.

In singles play, the Engineers posted victories in the first, third and sixth slots to cinch the overall team title. Tindell secured a 6-4, 6-4 win against junior Payum Payman (Pleasant Valley, NY/Arlington) at one, Beren defeated senior Matt Sheers (Beacon, NY/Beacon) 6-1, 6-0 at three, and junior Melvin Makhni (Fort Pierce, FL/Saint Edward's School) registered a 6-2, 6-4 triumph over senior Nick Potter (Concord, NH/Concord).

Danishevsky became the first player to take a point from the conference power with a 6-1, 6-2 final against Egan. Wheaton nearly captured two additional points before MIT won the team title by decision. Dressler opened his match in the fifth position with a 6-1 win in the first set and was serving match point in the second against freshman Peden Nichols (Great Falls, VA/Thomas Jefferson). Sophomore Sean Daly (Miami, FL/La Salle) won his opening set and held a 5-4 lead in the second spot.

Score Sheet

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