men's tennis News - July, 2009 Archive

May 28: St. Lawrence University men's tennis head coach Jeremy Freeman has announced that seniors Chris Rodilosso and Chris McDonald were serve as captains for the 2009-10 season.

May 18: Senior Jon Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald have been named to the 2009 Liberty League Men's Tennis First Team for both singles and doubles. Meanwhile, junior captain Chris Rodilosso was an Honorable Mention selection for his singles mark this season.

Satkowski, a senior captain, led the Saints to a 13-4 record in 2008-09. He finished the year 21-2 at No. 1 singles to earn the #20 ranking in the ITA Northeast. He was also a three-time Liberty League Performer of the Week. The Salisbury Mills, NY native was a First Team singles choice all four years on the Saints' men's tennis roster.

McDonald finished the regular season with a record of 12-6 and added a solid presence to the middle of the line-up. The Manchester, MA native was 10-3 at No. 4 singles.

Rodilosso, meanwhile, added depth to the Saints' singles' line-up. The Fair Haven, NJ native was 12-7 overall, including a 9-6 record at No. 6 singles and a 3-1 mark in tournament play.

Satkowski and McDonald earned First Team Doubles honors for the second straight season behind a 17-4 overall record. The duo was 15-2 at the No. 1 slot for the Saints and put together an impressive 13-match winning streak to complete the season.

Skidmore College nearly swept the 2009 Liberty League major awards, as Carl-Eric Girardin and Luke Granger won the Player and Rookie of the Year, respectively. Skidmore's head coach Nate Simms, however, was named the Co-Coach of the Year along with Vassar's Ki Kroll.

Apr. 24: Trailing 2-1 after the doubles portion of the match, the St. Lawrence University men's tennis team won four of six singles matches to rally past Ithaca College in the Saints' 2008-09 regular season finale.

St. Lawrence finished the regular campaign with a 13-4 record and is on the bubble for a bid into the 2009 NCAA Tournament.

The win was crucial for the Saints' resume for a post-season bid, as Ithaca (15-4) is also under consideration for a spot in the NCAA field.

The Bombers built a 2-1 lead in doubles play by winning at the No. 2 and 3 spots. Jimmy Newton and Daniel Wolk picked up an 8-1 win at No. 2 for Ithaca over St. Lawrence's sophomore tandem of Ren Gates and Jake Dexter while Andrew Dunnick and Mike Muraco held off juniors Chris Rodilosso and Christopher Tamm 9-7 at No. 3.

St. Lawrence University senior captain Jon Satkowski and junior partner Chris McDonald earned the only doubles win on Friday with a solid 8-6 performance against Taylor Borda and Josh Rifkin at the No. 1 slot.

Needing to pick up four singles wins to keep themselves alive for an NCAA bid, the Saints again picked up solid showings by Satkowski and McDonald at No.'s 1 and 4. Satkowski beat Borda 6-1, 6-1 while McDonald outlasted Wolk 6-3, 7-6 (4). Gates was also sound in singles play, as he earned the first point in the session with a 6-0, 6-0 win against Muraco at No. 5.

Apr. 19: The No. 3 seeded St. Lawrence University men's tennis team dominated the No. 5 seed Hobart College on Sunday in Geneva, NY, as the Saints clinched third place in the 2009 Liberty League Tournament behind a 9-0 victory.

St. Lawrence, which drilled Hobart 8-1 on April 11 in Canton, NY, moved to 12-4 on the season with the win. The team has now won 10 of its last 11 matches. Meanwhile, the loss sends the Statesmen to 5-16 on the year.

The Saints, coming off of a 7-2 loss to Vassar in the semifinals on Saturday, came out playing tough in the doubles portion of the match against Hobart. Senior Jon Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald continued their solid play with an 8-2 win against Hobart's Matt Hursh and Kevin Kent at No. 1, while sophomores Ren Gates and Jake Dexter overmatched Kevin Bates and Walter Green at No. 2, 8-3.

The junior pairing of Christopher Tamm and Chris Rodilosso then earned redemption against Adam Cohn and Mike Kofman. The Saints' duo, which lost a tight 9-8 match against the Hobart pair in their last meeting, came out on top 8-5 in the No. 3 doubles match on Sunday to give the Saints a big 3-0 lead heading into singles play.

St. Lawrence never looked back after sweeping the doubles, as they won all six singles bouts including four in straight sets. Satkowski was too much for Kent at No. 1, winning 6-0, 6-1, while classmate Pete Abernethy matched his effort with a 6-2, 6-0 win against Harry King.

Apr. 18: Only hours after the St. Lawrence University men's tennis team had extended its winning streak to ten matches with a 9-0 win over Rensselaer to kick off the 2009 Liberty League Tournament, Vassar College handed the Saints a 7-2 defeat to snap the streak and end the team's hopes of capturing the conference title. St. Lawrence will face the host team, Hobart College, in the third place match tomorrow while Vassar faces Skidmore in the championship match.

Vassar College, seeded No. 2 in this year's event, moved to 10-7 with the win while St. Lawrence falls to 11-4 after losing for the first time since February 22.

The Scarlet and Brown opened the 2009 Liberty League Tournament in Geneva, NY with a tidy shutout win over Rensselaer. St. Lawrence, which defeated Rensselaer 9-0 on Monday in Troy, NY, duplicated that performance with dominant play in both singles and doubles. The Saints' doubles teams did not drop a single game to the Red Hawks, as all three teams won 8-0. Senior captain Jon Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald won at No. 1, while sophomores Jake Dexter and Ren Gates captured the point at No. 2. Juniors Chris Rodilosso and Christopher Tamm made it a 3-0 sweep at the final doubles spot.

Apr. 13: The St. Lawrence University men's tennis team won their ninth straight match on Monday, as the Scarlet and Brown shut out Rensselaer 9-0 in Troy, NY. The Saints improved to 10-3 on the season and head into next weekend's 2009 Liberty League Tournament with momentum.

St. Lawrence wasted little time in building a 3-0 lead in the doubles matches against the Red Hawks. The Saints' No. 1 duo of senior captain Jon Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald won for the ninth straight time, defeating Ed Cullen and Matt Asher 8-4. Sophomores Jake Dexter and Ren Gates followed with an 8-2 victory against RPI's No. 2 team of Rohit Kumar and Michael Wilkins, 8-2.

Juniors Chris Rodilosso and Christopher Tamm made it a clean 3-0 sweep with a dominating performance at the No. 3 slot, as the duo beat Adam Kell and Eric Polesky by an 8-0 margin.

St. Lawrence continued their impressive play in singles play, as the Saints won all six matches in straight sets. Satkowski and classmate Pete Abernethy didn't lose a game in their matches against Cullen and Wilkins at No. 1 and 2, as Satkowski won 6-1, 6-0 and Abernethy 6-2, 6-0. Sophomore Will Cook edged Asher at No. 3 7-5, 7-5 while McDonald kept Kumar in check, 6-1, 6-2.

Gates and Rodilosso capped the scoring at 9-0 win singles wins over Adam Generale and Alex Franz at No.'s 5 and 6, respectively.

Apr. 11: The St. Lawrence University men's tennis team swept the six singles matches on Saturday against Hobart College en route to an 8-1 victory over the Statesmen in the Newell Field House. The win extended the Saints' winning streak to eight consecutive matches, while seniors Jon Satkowski and Pete Abernethy played in the final home match of their collegiate careers.

The Saints (9-3) took a 2-1 lead after the doubles portion of the match thanks to wins at No.'s 1 and 2. Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald defeated Hobart's Harry King and Kevin Kent 8-3 at the top spot, while sophomores Ren Gates and Jake Dexter handled Kevin Bates and Walter Green at No. 2, 8-4.

The Statesmen were able to get a point on the board behind a tough 9-8 (5) tiebreaker victory in the No. 3 doubles match. Adam Cohn and Mike Kofman edged juniors Chris Rodilosso and Christopher Tamm to keep Hobart within striking distance at 2-1 heading into singles.

However, St. Lawrence dominated the play in all six singles bouts by winning each in straight sets. Satkowski and Abernethy, as they have so often over the past two seasons, won at No.'s 1 and 2 respectively. Satkowski dropped Kent 6-1, 6-0, while Abernethy beat King 6-1, 6-3.

Sophomore Will Cook was a 6-2, 6-4 winner at No. 3 over Bates while McDonald, Gates and Rodilosso made it a clean sweep in the singles matches. McDonald was too much for Cohn, winning 6-3, 6-1 and Gates doubled up Kofman in each set, 6-3, 6-3. Rodilosso then outmatched Green at the No. 6 slot, 6-1, 6-1.

Apr. 5: The St. Lawrence University men's tennis team won four of six singles matches on Sunday afternoon to rally past the University of Rochester, 5-4. The win was the seventh straight for the Scarlet and Brown, which improved to 8-3 on the season.

The Saints trailed the Yellowjackets 2-1 after the doubles portion of Sunday's match, with the lone point coming from senior captain Jon Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald. The No. 1 doubles tandem was able to hold off Bennett Peterson and Brian Bowman 8-6.

Rochester took a 2-1 lead behind victories by Patrick Sheehan and Matt Volkov and Brian Schmeer and Daniel Barbash. Sheehan and Volkov beat St. Lawrence sophomores Ren Gates and Jake Dexter 8-6, while Schmeer and Barbash slipped past juniors Chris Rodilosso and Christopher Tamm at the No. 3 slot, 9-7.

Despite trailing by a point, the Saints were able to reel off four clutch singles wins to earn a 5-4 win. Satkowski and McDonald carried their momentum over from their doubles victory with straight set singles wins over Bowman and Sheehan at No. 1 and 4, respectively. Rochester responded with singles wins at No. 2 and 3, where Peterson and Schmeer defeated senior Pete Abernethy and sophomore Will Cook to pull the Yellowjackets to within a point of victory, 4-3.

Needing to win both of the final two matches, Gates and Rodilosso delivered two victories to keep the Saints' winning streak intact. Gates downed Jeff Zink 7-5, 6-3, while Rodilosso clinched the match for St. Lawrence with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Volkov.

Apr. 4: The St. Lawrence University men's tennis team handed Nazareth a 9-0 defeat on Saturday afternoon in Rochester, NY, giving the Saints their sixth consecutive victory.

St. Lawrence (7-3) was simply too much for the Golden Flyers (2-11), as they defeated an opponent by a 9-0 margin for second time this spring.

The Scarlet and Brown grabbed a 3-0 advantage through the doubles portion of the match as no team allowed Nazareth to win more than three games. Senior captain Jon Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald blitzed Adam Landry and Steve Trobert, 8-1 at the No. 1 slot, while sophomores Jake Dexter and Ren Gates cruised past Alex Wilczak and Alex Bodensieck, 8-3.

Junior captain Chris Rodilosso and classmate Christopher Tamm completed the doubles sweep with an 8-3 victory over Ben Caiella and Dan Matteo at the No. 3 spot.

The Saints continued to pour on the victories in singles play, as they won all six matches in straight sets. Satkowski handled Landry at No. 1, 6-1, 6-1, while senior Pete Abernethy dominated Trobert, 6-0, 6-2 at No. 2.

Sophomore Will Cook and McDonald won their matches at No.'s 3 and 4 over Bodensieck and Wilczak, respectively, while Gates and Rodilosso added singles wins for the Scarlet and Brown as well. Gates beat Caiella 6-2, 6-1 while Rodilosso dropped Colin Doran 6-0, 6-1.

St. Lawrence will look to extend their winning streak to seven matches on Sunday when they visit the University of Rochester.

Apr. 1: St. Lawrence University seniors Jon Satkowski and Pete Abernethy each won two matches on Wednesday afternoon, lifting the Saints to a narrow 5-4 win over Hamilton College in Clinton, NY. The Scarlet and Brown swept the doubles portion of the match and were able to hold off the home team in singles play to earn the victory.

St. Lawrence moves to 6-3 on the season having won their fifth consecutive match dating back to March 7, while Hamilton falls to 1-4 in 2008-09.

"This was a crucial win for us, and it was great to see our veterans come through with clutch points," said St. Lawrence head coach Jeremy Freeman. "Our doubles play has been improving all season long and I think we're really starting to build momentum."

Though St. Lawrence took a 3-0 lead after the doubles portion of the match, the Continentals made their opponents work for every point. The No. 2 pairing of Abernethy and sophomore Ren Gates defeated Drew Libin and Cody Berman 8-5 in what proved to be the widest margin of victory in the matches. St. Lawrence would take a 2-0 cushion when Satkowski and junior Chris McDonald were able to fend off Greg Kreitzer and Henry Ciocca, 9-7 at the No. 1 slot.

In what proved to be a critical point in the match, juniors Chris Rodilosso and Christopher Tamm were deadlocked with Mike Moreno and Peter Erwin, 8-8, forcing the match into a tiebreaker situation. It was there that St. Lawrence's No. 3 doubles team would prevail by a tight 8-6 margin to win 9-8 (8-6).