Dayton Varsity Tennis Wrap-up: Weeks 3 & 4

The 2010 Dayton Tennis season is shaping up to be an interesting one. It seems as if it is going to be nail-biting right down to the last match; just when I think I know how a match will turn out, things take a 180˚.

Week 3 started off with a match against Solomon Schechter. While watching this match I was surprised when I walked over to Dan Karlin's court. Karlin had lost the first game 6-4, but won the second game 5-7. In the third set, Karlin had a tough 6-1 loss.

Matt Neubauer started out with a defeat, too, but turned it around. In the first set, he lost 2-6, but then won 6-4 in the next set and 6-3 in the final set.

Ross Konesky has proved himself to be a valuable member of the team this year. He plays hard and although he doesn't win every time, when he does it's sure to be a match to watch. Solomon Schechter's Jeff Shafir played Konesky and won the first set 6-1 and the second 6-0.

The next match of the week was against Oratory Prep. Dan Karlin and Matt Neubauer easily reached victory, but the match highlight was Ross Konesky. Konesky played two 6-game sets and lost zero games. He won the sets 6-0, 6-0.

In connection with what I said about Konesky above, he really is an asset to the team. He plays every game like it's his last and gives it 110%. Another great match to watch was Dmitry Suvorov and David Pilmenstein. Although they didn't win they also played a great match. In the first set, they were neck and neck with Oratory until the end. Other honorable mentions include Zac Corey and Brandon Helfand's 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 win.

The final match of the week was against Caldwell. This was the first time Dayton has played Caldwell, and it went pretty well. Dayton came out on top with a 3-2 victory. Ross Konesky continued his amazing week with the longest match of the week. Konesky played the longest match, possibly of the season, with 43 games and although he didn't win that game, he won more individual games than any other player.

Week 4 was off to a rough start. Dayton played one of the toughest teams, Westfield. Westfield always poses a challenge, which discouraged most of the players, but Dan Karlin would not back down. In the first set, Karlin played the longest single set of the day, 12 games, but ended up with a tough loss. In the second set, he would not back down and he came out on top with a 6-2 victory. It all came down to the third set. Karlin and his opponent Justin Snyder were neck and neck, but towards the end of the set Snyder pulled away for a close set of 6-4.

The last match of the week was between Dayton and Bernards. This was another tough match for Dayton. Bernards had the upperhand because they have had many more matches than Dayton. Dan Karlin and Matt Neubauer were the only two victorious players in the match and surprisingly enough they finished with the same score, 6-4, 6-4.

Dayton's current record is 4-5 going into Week 5.

I'd like to start something new at Patch. Every two weeks I post a wrap-up on the Dayton Varsity Tennis team and there is a player each week that goes above and beyond to rise to the challenge.

Week 3's Patch MVP is Ross Konesky. In week 3, Ross rose to the challenge. Although he wasn't victorious  in his the first match , he never backs down and plays his hardest even when the odds are against him. This was proven in his match against Oratory Prep. Ross didn't let his opponent win even one game. He truly deserves week 3's Patch MVP.

Week 4's Patch MVP is Dan Karlin. Dan has always been a great player. In his four years at Dayton, he has more than proved himself on the team. This past week he really showed why he is great. Dan was the only player to win a set against his opponent in Westfield, which gave him the opportunity to fight for victory in the third set. In the Bernards match, Dan bounced back from his tough loss with a 6-4, 6-4 victory, which is why Dan is week 4's Patch MVP.

Week 3

Dayton (2) v. Solomon Schechter (3)

1st Singles: Ari Smolyar, Solomon Schechter def. Dan Karlin 6-4, 5-7, 6-1.

2nd Singles: Matt Neubauer, Dayton def. Dan Klein 2-6, 6-4, 6-3.

3rd Singles: Jeff Shafir, Solomon Schechter def. Ross Konesky 6-1, 6-0.

1st Doubles: Eric Marcus and Jordan Marcus, Solomon Schechter def. Dmitry Suvorov and David Pilmenstein 6-3, 6-0.

2nd Doubles: Jake Kozlenko and Jason Condon, Dayton def. Jacob Glickman and David Newman 6-4, 2-6, 6-3.

Dayton (4) v. Oratory Prep (1)

1st Singles: Dan Karlin, Dayton def. Matt Pigott 6-0, 6-1.

2nd Singles: Matt Neubauer, Dayton def. Kevin McGovern 6-2, 6-2.

3rd Singles: Ross Konesky, Dayton def. Christian Knight 6-0, 6-0.

1st Doubles: Brendan Bakst and Matt Tribble, Oratory def. David Pilmenstein and Dmitry Suvorov 7-5, 6-2.

2nd Doubles: Zac Corey and Brandon Helfand, Dayton def. Mario Nasta and Scott Turtur 6-3, 2-6, 6-4.

Dayton (3) v. Caldwell (2)

 1st Singles: Dan Karlin, Dayton def. Ethan Flint 6-1, 6-0.

2nd Singles: Matt Neubauer, Dayton def. Dylan Silver 6-3, 6-4.

3rd Singles: Neil Shulman, Caldwell def. Ross Konesky 5-7, 7-6, 10-8.

1st Doubles: Andrew Lucila and Michael Melchione, Caldwell def. Brandon Helfand and Zac Corey 7-6, 6-2.

2nd Doubles: David Pilmenstein and Jason Condon, Dayton def. Danny Spadaro and 6-2, 6-4.

Week 4

Dayton(0) v. Westfield (5)

1st Singles: Justin Snyder, Westfield def. Dan Karlin 5-7, 6-2, 6-4.

2nd Singles: Scott Bernstein, Westfield def. Matt Neubauer 6-0, 6-0.

3rd Singles: Tom Kowalski, Westfield def. Ross Konesky 6-1, 6-0.

1st Doubles: Graeme Stahl and Alan Chu, Westfield def. David Pilmenstein and Dmitry Suvorov 6-0, 6-0.

2nd Doubles: Josh Simmons and Scott Thompson, Westfield def. Brandon Helfand and Zac Corey 6-0, 6-1.

Dayton (2) v. Bernards (3)

1st Singles: Dan Karlin, Dayton def. Luke Roser 6-4, 6-4.

2nd Singles: Matt Neubauer, Dayton def. Harrison Clark 6-4, 6-4.

3rd Singles: Danny Haut, Bernards def. Ross Konesky 6-0, 6-2.

1st Doubles: John Goode and Eric Oringer, Bernards def. David Pilmenstein and Dmitry Suvorov 6-0, 6-2.

2nd Doubles: Jordan Isaacs and Johannes Oster, Bernards def. and Zac Corey 6-1, 6-0.