In a match that the Harvard men's tennis team played for charity, it showed Penn State none of it, sweeping the Nitanny Lions, 7-0.
The Crimson (8-2) was looking for a convincing win after last weekend's tough outing at the National Men's Team Indoor Championship in Seattle, where it went 1-2, losing to two top- ten teams by close margins.
The Crimson and the Lions (5-2) met at the Sportsmen's Tennis Club in Dorchester to draw attention to collegiate tennis and the center's tennis program, which provides free lessons to urban youth from diverse backgrounds.
The match began with doubles play. Sophomore James Blake and co-captain Kunj Majmudar, the No. 2 doubles team in the country, defeated Penn's top doubles team of Eric Meditz and Marc Dorfman 8-6. Although the final outcome was close, Majmudar and Blake were comfortable throughout, shrugging off mistakes and winning comfortably with an effective serve-and-volley game.
The Crimson's number two doubles team did not fare as well. Co-captain Michael Passarella and sophomore Scott Clark lost 8-6 to Penn State's Jeffrey Martini and Damon Accardi.
The number three doubles team of juniors John Doran and Joe Green salvaged the doubles point, however, defeating Penn's Mike Griesser and Mike McCallister, 8-5.
In singles, the Crimson men rearranged their lineup and came out a winner with the new formula. Majmudar, currently the No. 31 player in the country, sat out his usual number two singles position.
"I have been feeling pretty sick all week and just didn't make it down to practice," he said.
Clark also sat out the singles portion of the match.
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