On Saturday, Oct. 4, the men’s and women’s tennis teams traveled to Harrison, N.Y., to take on the Manhattanville Valiants from Manhattanville University in their final matches of the fall season. The men’s team cruised to a 5-2 victory, while the women’s team fought hard to clinch a 4-3 nailbiter.
Both matches began with the doubles portion, in which the school that wins two out of three matches earns the elusive “doubles point.” Both the men’s and women’s teams captured two of the three doubles sets, giving each side an early 1-0 lead.
On the men’s team, singles matches featured a mix of hard-fought battles and dominant performances. Despite dropping the first set, Jesse Faro (‘26) won a two-and-a-half-hour match against Manhattanville’s Thomas Jouanneau in a thrilling third-set tiebreaker, securing the overall victory for the team. Daniel Arcari (‘27), Nicolas Mobayed (‘27) and Shivendra Perera (‘26) all recorded straight-set wins at the first, third, and fourth singles positions, respectively.
The women’s singles lineup featured tightly contested matches as well. Riley Roesel (‘27) earned her first career victory at the top singles position in a third-set tiebreaker. Daylin Evans (‘27) cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win in the first victory of her collegiate career and Kapriana Payami (‘27) clinched the match for the women’s team in straight sets.
With the win, the men closed out their fall season undefeated at 2-0, winning 12 of a possible 14 points after their 7-0 victory over Pratt Institute on Sept. 27. With new faces in the bottom of the lineup, the team looks to carry this momentum into the spring season and Landmark Conference, both beginning in February.
The women’s team overcame injuries to key players to secure their first win of the fall at Manhattanville, showcasing the lineup’s depth and resilience. Both the men’s and women’s teams will conclude their fall seasons at this Saturday’s Alumni Match at 11:00 a.m., when former players will return to Drew courts to compete in matches and mini-games against the current roster.
Devan Sutaria is a senior majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology with a minor in business.
