M. Tennis loses two EITA games in New England

Sometimes the best isn't good enough. That was the case as the Penn men's tennis team lost both matches last weekend on a long road trip to New England. "I haven't really seen our guys play straight down the board as well as they did," Quakers junior Marc Fisicaro said. Fisicaro and the rest of the Red and Blue played tough but were unable to overcome the odds, as they traveled to face two of the elite teams in the Ivy League -- Harvard and Dartmouth. Penn received a sign that the weekend would turn in this ominous direction right at the beginning. For the first time in eight matches, the Quakers surrendered the doubles points to their opponents. Penn uncharacteristically lost all three of the doubles contests in close fashion. Even the No. 1 team of Fisicaro and Udi Kish lost, 8-6. The No. 2 squad of Brad Goldberg and J.J. Cramer took the match into extra points. The senior co-captains tried to pump life into the Quakers but lost the effort, 9-7. The singles were unable to pick up the slack, losing all but one match. The singles play was simply not able to overcome the Crimson abilities. "I felt like I played pretty well and had some chances. I just couldn't capitalize on some key points," said Kish, Penn's No. 1 singles player. One Quakers highlight was the match play of Goldberg. In a confrontation of the two captains, durability came to the forefront. Goldberg played his opponent even through two sets. In the third, Goldberg came up big, winning 7-6. The second Penn point was earned by sophomore David Schwartzman. The second-year Quaker turned in a strong straight set showing, 7-4, 6-0. Penn left the match with a defeat, in need of a mental turnaround, and knowing the trip to Dartmouth would bring yet another tough opponent. "It was great for us to know that they beat Columbia because it made us even more conscious of how good they were," Kish said. The Penn doubles got back on track, winning three straight matches. Both the No. 1 and No. 2 teams won with ease. Kish and Fisicaro gave up only three points in their match. Cramer and Goldberg played even better with an 8-2 defeat of Dartmouth's Matt Fuller and Avery Rueb. "Morale was pretty high, but we obviously knew it wasn't over," Kish said of the doubles play. With only three indoor courts available, the first three singles unfolded in front of the rest players. Kish lost his match in two close sets, 6-4, 7-6. Goldberg, the third player, also lost a tough one in the first round of play. Taking the match to three sets, Goldberg was also unable to hang on, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Fisicaro, playing second singles, was able to keep the score tied for the Quakers. The Penn junior won in two sets, 7-5, 6-4, giving the bottom three singles players a chance to make the difference. Penn was unable to capitalize, as the No. 4 through No. 6 players played close matches, but came up short in all three. "It gave Dartmouth a little more momentum, because I was the first to win, and they got their two points right before the last three players took the court," Fisicaro said. Cramer lost a heartbreaker in three sets, as he was unable to capitalize on a service for match point. Up 6-5 in the third set, Cramer held serve for the match, but opponent Rob Simik came back and took the match, 7-5. "The Dartmouth players played above their head from what they showed in the fall," Fisicaro said. The end tally came up against the Quakers, 5-2, and made the weekend a wash for Penn. "We left our hearts on the court. Sometimes each and every player gives his best and you still come up on the losing end," Kish said. "Obviously, it was disappointing." The Quakers' weekend ended a run of wins in the Eastern Intercollegiate Tennis Association, and made the next weekend of play a must win situation if Penn is to reach Eastern regionals.

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