Men's tennis wins Ivy League Championship

Team heads to NCAA for first time

by Dionne Montgomery

The Brown men's tennis team dismissed Harvard 4-3 in a fight to the end as the two squads struggled to hold on to their undefeated Ivy League records.

The April 21 win gave the Bears their first-ever Ivy League tennis title and snagged their first NCAA invite in the process.

The battle at Erickson Athletic Complex came down to freshman Adil Shamasdin, who, just one point from victory, lost his balance but, practically on his knees, managed to hit the game-winning shot past his opponent, Harvard captain William Lee. The fans cheered and stomped in the bleachers, then rushed over to the final match being played on a nearby by court to celebrate.

"I feel really good right now," said Shamasdin. “The early-morning training, the hard work, everything we've done all season comes down to this – winning the Ivy League."

Shamasdin, of Pickering, Ontario, came back from a set down to win the match, which gave Brown the edge over Harvard.

Head tennis coach Jon Choboy said he knew the match would be close. The Bear victory "feels really good, especially in front of the home crowd. We had the advantage after winning doubles. We needed to split in singles, and we did exactly that. But we're not done yet."

"The crowd was definitely a factor," said Peter Mandeau, associate coach of Harvard’s team. "It was tough to play in front of the crowd. It was a tight match, we fought hard, but Brown came out on top and I congratulate them."

Brown senior Nick Malone, who will be an entrant in the Davis Cup, lost his bout with Jon Chu, 6-4, 6-2, but quickly ran to the adjoining court to support his teammates. "This is tremendous," said Malone, who hopped the fence to hug friends. "What a great way for me to go out. I would have liked to have won my match, but I'm very excited."  Malone will represent Ireland at the Davis Cup.

Junior Justin Natale of Flushing, N.Y., and teammate Chris Drake '03, of Needham, Mass., won the doubles title earlier in the day.

To put this day into perspective, Brown hadn't won a tennis title since joining the Ivy League Eastern Intercollegiate Tennis Association in 1961. Their last winning season was in 1989, when they finished 7-0 in the Ivies.

“We’ve played well against the top three NCAA teams already,” said Choboy. “I don't feel we've played our best tennis yet. The best is yet to come."

The NCAA rounds begin May 10; the location has not been announced. Visit Brownbears.com for a complete list of match scores.