POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (March 27, 2010) - The Vassar men's tennis team avenged their previous two losses to NESCAC contender Tufts University with an 8-1 win, defeating Tufts for the first time in program history Saturday afternoon at Walker Fieldhouse.

The no. 24 ITA nationally ranked Brewers improve to 10-0 on the year and hit the road on Monday, March 29 to face Drew at 4:30 p.m. The ITA Northeast no. 10 Jumbos (1-1) travel to Stevens Sunday, March 28 for a 10:30 a.m. match.

The Brewers shifted the doubles lineup to reunite the Guzick brothers Ben and Andrew at the no. 1 position, pair Michael Mattelson and Max Willner at no. 2, and keep the formidable no. 3 team of Greg Katz and Josh Jasso intact.

“We tried a few new combinations and it raised the level of play,” said head coach Ki Kroll, “they all played exceptionally well so I was very happy with my doubles teams.”

The coaching move paid off as the Brewers took an early 3-0 lead with a decisive sweep of doubles.

“When we experience this kind of success, it's easy to take it for granted,” said Kroll, “so it was good to find our focus early and come out firing.”

Sophomore Ben Guzick delivered the clincher for the Brewers with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Jake Fountain at no. 2 singles.

“Ben has been a great addition and it really gives our line-up a big boost,” said Kroll.

At no. 5 singles, Katz conquered the feisty Andrew Rosen 4-6, 6-3, and 10-8 in the super-breaker.

“Greg has lost two years in a row to a guy who is probably their most consistent winner,” said Kroll, “so he fought off the demons to pick up the win today.”

Freshman Andrew Guzick rolled to a speedy 6-1, 6-2 victory over Sam Laber at no. 3 singles.

“Andrew is taking care of business, and he's off the court in no time,” said Kroll “he's really finding his game right now.”

Overall the Brewers showed little sign of rust from the second week of Spring break free of organized tennis.

“This was a match to gauge our team's momentum, we could have easily came out and had a close match because Tufts is always a strong team,” said Kroll, “so to see the whole team step up and meet the challenge, it speaks to the hard work we've put in.”

Vassar 8, Tufts 1

DOUBLES:

1) Ben Guzick/ Andrew Guzick (VC) def. Kai Victoria/ Jake Fountain (T) 8-3
2) Mike Mattelson/ Max Willner (VC) def. Paul Kohnstamm/ Daniel Landers (T) 8-4
3) Greg Katz/ Josh Jasso (VC) def. Morrie Bossen/ Andrew Lutz (T) 8-4

SINGLES:

1) Mike Mattelson (VC) def. Kai Victoria (T) 6-7⁴, 6-1, 6-4
2) Ben Guzick (VC) def. Jake Fountain (T) 6-2, 7-5
3) Andrew Guzick (VC) def. Sam Laber (T) 6-1, 6-2
4) Max Willner (VC) def. Tony Carucci (T) 6-0, 3-6, 6-2
5) Greg Katz (VC) def. Andrew Rosen (T) 4-6, 6-3, (10-8)
6) Ben Barad (T) def. Jeremy Arthur (VC) 7-6⁶, 6-2