HARLEM, NY (December 6, 2009) -- In its final matches of 2009, the Vassar College men's squash team dropped a 9-0 match to No. 12 Bates College and a tight 5-4 decision to Vanderbilt University on Sunday at the Street Squash facility in Harlem.

The Brewers conclude the semester with a 3-6 record and have over a month away from competition, opening 2010 with a January 23 match at Amherst College against Colby College and Franklin & Marshall College.

The Brewers lost freshman No. 6 Andrew Lindsay to a injury against Bates and did not have him for the close match with Vanderbilt. Additionally, Vassar was without junior Kyle Holter, a regular in the lineup, who was unavailable for Sunday's matches.

Against No. 12 Bates, the closest match came at No. 3, as senior captain Arjun Agarwala took Bates' Daero Lee to four games, eventually falling 11-5, 11-5, 5-11, 11-4.

In the second match of the day, the Brewers dropped a tightly-played contest to Vanderbilt, with five of the matches decided by at least four games.

A 3-1 victory at No. 4 from senior captain Henk Isom, a sweep at No. 5 from junior Arjun Jain and a default win for sophomore Yi Tan at No. 9 evened the score 3-3 heading into the final three matches. Vanderbilt's Angus Aronstein put his team ahead with a sweep of freshman Robert Ruggiero at No. 7, but Vassar freshman Jacob Harris, returning from a two-month long layoff with an illness, evened the score by picking up a 3-1 win at the top of the ladder, recovering from a first game loss to defeat Hunter Kinsella, 7-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-6. The decisive game came down to the No. 3 spot, where Vanderbilt's Jay Rosanelli pulled out a 3-1 win over Agarwala, 11-8, 11-6, 9-11, 12-10.

Although he dropped his match at No. 2, junior Mehdi Naqvi had an impressive five-game battle with Tyler Kopp, evening the score after dropping the first two games in a 11-8, 11-5, 12-14, 10-12, 11-5 loss.

The venue for these contests was the Street Squash Facility in Harlem on 116th Street West and the Brewers were greeted by Vassar Squash alum Ryan McGinley-Stempel, who upon graduation decided to work in the sport. Street Squash provides after-school tutoring, college preparation, and squash instruction to at-risk 6th to 12th graders in Harlem. Over 150 students are in the program and each child is seen at least 4 times a week. "We hold our participants to high standards and it's a great partnership," said the Vassar '08 alum.

It's a wonderful squash facility that is very fitting for New York as it's all hustle and bustle with brightly lit courts. A good crowd was on hand with numerous parents and friends crowding into the building.

Bates 9, Vassar 0

1. Jordan Greenberg (B) def. Jake Harris (VC), 3-0 (11-4 11-2, 11-7).
2. Bobby Burns (B) def. Mehdi Naqvi (VC),3-0 (11-4, 11-0, 11-0).
3. Daero Lee (B) def. Arjun Argwala (VC), 3-1 (11-5, 11-5, 5-11, 11-4).
4. Pat Williams (B) def. Henk Isom (VC), 3-0 (11-2, 11-7, 11-3).
5. Eric Bedell (B) def. Arjun Jain (VC), 3-0 (11-1, 11-6, 11-3).
6. R.J. Keating (B) def. Andrew Lindsay (VC), 3-0 (11-6, 11-1 , Injured).
7. Matt Baker-White (B) def. Ansser Sadiq (VC), 3-0 (11-3, 11-3, 11-2).
8. Nick Kourides (B) def. Rob Ruggiero (VC), 3-0 (11-5, 11-1, 11-4).
9. Walter Cabot (B) def. Max Middleton (VC), 3-0 (11-2, 11-3, 11-2).
Exhibition:
10. Will Fearnley (B) def. Yi Tan (VC), 3-0 (9-2, 9-3, 9-1).

Vanderbilt 5, Vassar 4

1. Jake Harris (VC) def. Hunter Kinsella (VU), 3-1 (7-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-6)
2. Tyler Kopp (VU) def. Mehdi Naqvi (VC), 3-2 (11-8, 11-6, 12-14, 10-12, 11-5)
3. Jay Rosanelli (VU) def. Arjun Agarwala (VC), 3-1 (11-8, 11-6, 9-11, 12-10)
4. Henk Isom (VC) def. Zach Hoyt (VU), 3-1 (11-9, 13-11, 5-11, 11-7)
5. Arjun Jain (VC) def. Amos Kendall (VU), 3-0 (11-9, 11-7, 11-8)
6. Austin Schiff (VU) def. Ansser Sadiq (VC), 3-0 (11-4, 11-4, 11-5)
7. Angus Aronstein (VU) def. Rob Ruggiero (VC), 3-0 (11-3, 11-5, 11-2)
8. Duncan Aronstein (VU) def. Max Middleton (VC), 3-1 (11-9, 11-5, 7-11, 11-4)
9. Yi Tan (VC), by default