Liberty League Men's Tennis Championship Preview
Friday, May 3 – Sunday, May 5, 2024; Reis Tennis Center, Cornell University; Ithaca, N.Y.
 
TOURNAMENT COVERAGE:
LIVE RESULTS
Live tournament results can also be viewed on the iOnCourt mobile app.
 
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE:
Friday
8:30 a.m. - #5 Skidmore vs. #4 St. Lawrence
11:30 a.m. - #6 Ithaca vs. #3 Vassar
 
Saturday
8:30 a.m. - #1 RPI vs. #4/5 winner
11:30 a.m. - #2 Hobart vs. #3/6 winner
 
Sunday
9 a.m. – Semifinal winners
 
ABOUT THE TEAMS:
#1 RPI (15-1 overall, 8-0 Liberty League)

• RPI earned the top seed in the Liberty League tournament after going unbeaten in league play (8-0). The Engineers, currently the league's top-ranked team at 23rd in the Division III poll, are ranked seventh in the ITA Northeast Region rankings.
• RPI defeated Hobart 5-4 on the road in a match that determined the top seed. The Engineers defeated the Statesmen in last year's Liberty League championship match, 5-3, after sweeping the doubles matches.
• Junior All-American Aiden Drover-Mattinen anchors the RPI lineup from the first singles position for the third straight year. Drover-Mattinen is 13-3 in dual match singles play, including 7-1 in the Liberty League. His only loss in league matches was a close 7-6, 6-4 decision to Hobart's Sean Pesin in Geneva. Drover-Mattinen and sophomore Andy Zhu have also combined for a 14-2 record at first doubles (7-1 Liberty League). Drover-Mattinen is currently ranked 13th in the ITA Northeast Region while Drover-Mattinen and Zhu are ranked eighth in the region in doubles.
• RPI went 43-5 in Liberty League singles matches and 20-4 in doubles matches. Zhu (8-0), Bryce Burnham (8-0) and Tasmay Shah (7-0) were unbeaten in the league.

#2 HOBART (14-5 overall, 7-1 Liberty League)

• After starting the spring 0-3 with losses to 9th-ranked Denison, Division I Cornell, and 21st-ranked TCNJ, Hobart strung together 12 straight victories before dropping a narrow 5-4 decision to RPI. The Statesmen are currently ranked 34th nationally and 10th in the ITA Northeast Region.
• The first doubles team of senior Sean Pesin and sophomore Nick Fischer currently rank fifth in the ITA Northeast Region with a 13-5 record and a 7-1 mark in Liberty League play. The team's only loss was a narrow 8-7 (7-4) defeat to Vassar in Hobart's first league match of the year.
• Pesin, an NCAA singles qualifier last spring, is 9-7 at first singles, including 5-1 in Liberty League play. As a team, Hobart went 40-8 in Liberty League singles matches and 18-6 in doubles matches.
• First-year Achilleas Kousaridis and junior Hyat Oyer lead the Statesmen with 14 dual match wins apiece.

#3 VASSAR (12-5 overall, 6-2 Liberty League)

• Vassar, currently ranked 45th in the latest Division III poll, has battled through some injuries this spring, but has continued to post strong results. After dropping a 5-4 decision at Hobart in the first league match of the spring, the Brewers won their next five Liberty League matches.
• Senior Jay Wong returned to the lineup after missing the 2022-23 season and has had a strong campaign at the top of the Vassar lineup. Wong is 10-7 in dual matches and 6-2 in the Liberty League with his only losses coming against Drover-Mattinen and Pesin.
• Vassar has been strong in the 3 through 6 positions in the singles lineup as each lineup spot has produced an 11-6 dual match record. First-year Eugene Lee is the team leader in dual match wins with 11, including a 7-1 mark at third singles.
• The doubles team of Lee and Pedro Cattaruzzi has had the most success, going 8-4 at third doubles and 2-1 in Liberty League play.

#4 ST. LAWRENCE (8-10 overall, 4-4 Liberty League)

• St. Lawrence, picked seventh in the Liberty League preseason poll, finished fourth under first-year head coach Tavis Rieger. The Saints opened their Liberty League schedule with a 5-4 win over Skidmore, the first win for the Saints over the Thoroughbreds since the 2009-10 season. The teams will meet again in the first match of the tournament Friday.
• Senior Adam Heilbronner climbed up to first singles this season after playing second singles as a junior. Including tournament play, he has seven wins this year.
• The strength of the Saints' lineup is in the 4 through 6 spots as senior Ben Moolman and juniors John Hill-Edgar and Edvin Strandberg have combined for 25 dual-match victories, including 11 in Liberty League play.
• St. Lawrence's first doubles team of Heilbronner and junior Broderick Pinto have played together the entire spring and own a 9-8 record (4-4 Liberty League).

#5 SKIDMORE (5-11 overall, 4-4 Liberty League)

• Skidmore is one of the youngest teams in the league with a roster consisting of one junior, two sophomores and six first-year players. The Thoroughbreds have played one of the nation's toughest schedules having faced Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (#1), Middlebury (#2), Washington-St. Louis (#7), Trinity-Texas (#9) and Tufts (#11) along with three ranked Liberty League teams.
• Skidmore has gone 27-21 in Liberty League singles matches and 12-12 in doubles matches. Sophomore Nika Mori has been the team's most consistent player with an 8-8 dual-match record and a 7-1 mark in the Liberty League.
• First-year players Louis Bourn, Yuval Goodman and Fletcher King have occupied spots in the top of the lineup. The Thoroughbreds have used 19 different doubles combinations this season. Bourn and junior Griffin Biernat are a combined 5-2, including a 5-0 mark in Liberty League matches.

#6 ITHACA (7-11 overall, 3-5 Liberty League)

• Ithaca returns to the Liberty League tournament for the first time since 2018-19 when the Bombers earned a first-round victory over Vassar. First-year head coach Tom Rishcoff has led Ithaca to a 7-9 record against Division III opponents and league wins over Union, RIT and Bard.
• Senior Nicolas Luis, an All-Liberty League second-team selection, anchors the Ithaca lineup from the number-one singles position. Luis has gone 10-7 in dual matches and 5-3 in the Liberty League. First-year player Gijs Fidler has had a strong rookie season with a 10-6 singles record (10-5 at second singles) and 5-2 in league matches.
• The doubles team of first-year players Fidler and Emiliano Pedrero has been solid for the Bombers, going 11-11 overall and 7-8 in dual matches at first doubles.

 
NEXT: The championship team will earn the Liberty League's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championship.