MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – In a matchup between two nationally-ranked teams, it was No. 16 Denison who came out with a 6-3 win over No. 13 Wesleyan on Saturday morning in a match played in the Bacon Fieldhouse. This marked just the second meeting between Wesleyan (2-3) and Denison (8-1) as the two sides first met back in the 1994 season (7-2 Denison win).
Doubles play went Denison's way as Marc-Lennart Harms and Blake Eason started with an 8-2 victory at #3 over
Max Lustgarten '25 and
Clay Gaieski '23. Wesleyan did manage a win at #2 as
Zach Lieb '22 and
Harry Portnoy '24 combined for an 8-5 win over Andy Mackler and Colin Gramley. The #1 match came down to the wire with Tim Cianciola and Jack Bulger eventually taking an 8-6 win over
Peter Anker '22 and
Ben Mitchell '24, securing a 2-1 advantage in the team scoring heading into singles.
In a tightly-contested singles competition, three of the six matches needed a third set to decide a winner while a fourth match went into a second set tiebreak. The first match to finish was #4 as Ryan Patrick managed to overcome losing the first set to Portnoy 4-6 to come roaring back with 6-1, 6-2 victories in the second and third set to claim a point for Denison.
The Cardinals got a much-needed point from Anker at #1 as he defeated Cianciola 6-2, 7-6 (7-3) to make it 3-2 Denison early in singles play. Just moments later, Mitchell won his match at #3 over Bulger with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 set score line as suddenly it was all tied up at 3 apiece.
Lieb got off to a promising start at #2, winning the opening set 7-5, but Harms answered back with a 6-2 second set win before sealing the come-from-behind win with another 6-2 set victory in the third to put Denison just one point away from clinching the match.
Leading 4-3, the Big Red got the match-clinching point from Mackler at #5 as he toppled Lustgarten 6-2, 6-3. Eason followed with a 6-0, 6-4 win at #6 over
Max Lee '22 as Denison closed out the match with three straight singles victories to win 6-3.
Wesleyan hits the road for a NESCAC weekend on March 26-27 as the Cardinals first travel to Hamilton before taking on Amherst as the Cardinals start a string of six consecutive NESCAC matches.
