Bucknell University
Army
Bucknell Men's Tennis Ends Postseason with 4-2 Loss to Army in Patriot League Semis
4/16/2011 8:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 16, 2011
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Bucknell men's tennis vied for the upset in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals but couldn't quite make it happen as the fourth-seeded Bison fell to No. 1 Army 4-2 at the Lewis Tennis Center on Saturday afternoon. Bucknell forced the team score to 2-2 half way through before the Black Knights punched their ticket to the championship round by winning the final two completed singles matches.
Bucknell (11-8) lost in the semifinals for the fifth consecutive year. It was also the second time during that span that the Bison were knocked out of contention by the Black Knights. The inability to pull out the win left a bitter taste in Bucknell's mouth.
“We're very disappointed that we're not going to the finals,” said head coach Rebecca Helt. “We've worked every single day on doing all the right things. Today, we gave Army everything we had and it just wasn't our time. I'm proud of how far this team has come in a few short years, and we just won't be satisfied until be bring the trophy back to Bucknell.”
Bucknell improved greatly in just the two weeks since it met Army during the regular season. Earlier this month, the Black Knights swept doubles play, but it was the Bison's turn to take the first point in the postseason. Gregg Cohenca (Purchase, N.Y./Rye Country Day School) and Mark Malloy (Bronxville, N.Y./Hackley School) teamed up for a win at No. 2 doubles to get things started. The duo defeated Gary Kushnirovich and Alex Holland, 8-4. The decision was a revenge of sorts as the same Army squad had defeated Cohenca and Malloy 8-6 in their first meeting this spring.
Anton Kovic (Montreal, Quebec/Milton Academy (Mass.)) and Evan Zimmer (Essex Fells, N.J./West Essex) also returned the favor of an earlier loss to Tripp Johnson and Donald Van Velzer at No. 1 doubles. Kovic and Zimmer won 8-5 on Saturday.
With singles play underway, Cohenca put Bucknell back in front 2-1 on the team scoreboard with a three-set victory over Asika Isoh at the top of the lineup. Both players won a set apiece 6-2 to take the contest even deeper. Cohenca did not let Isoh steal all the momentum from the Black Knight's second-set win, however, and the Bison won the third 6-4.
The battles continued on several other courts. Zimmer and Josh Katten (Plainview, N.Y./Plainview JFK) each pushed their matches to three sets as well, but the decisions went to Army in both cases. Zimmer was unable to hold on after a first-set win, eventually falling to Van Velzer 5-7, 7-5, 6-3 at third singles. Katten suffered the same fate at the hands of Johnson, 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-0, at fourth singles.
Army's Henry Jang-Milsten closed out the day with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Kyle Rosen (Armonk, N.Y./Byram Hills) that sent the Black Knights to a meeting with Lehigh or Navy in tomorrow's final match.
Although Bucknell's postseason run has come a close, the season is not completely done just yet. The Bison will travel to Bloomsburg for a 4 p.m. match on April 19.
Army 4, Bucknell 2
Doubles
1. Anton Kovic/Evan Zimmer (B) def. Tripp Johnson/Donald Van Velzer (A) 8-5
2. Gregg Cohenca/Mark Malloy (B) def. Gary Kushnirovich/Alex Holland (A) 8-4
3. Asika Isoh/Henry Jang-Milsten (A) def. Josh Katten/Kelly Morque (B) 8-4
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles
1. Gregg Cohenca (B) def. Asika Isoh (A) 6-2, 2-6, 6-4
2. Gary Kushnirovich (A) def. Anton Kovic (B) 6-1, 7-6 (7)
3. Donald Van Velzer (A) def. Evan Zimmer (B) 5-7, 7-5, 6-3
4. Tripp Johnson (A) def. Josh Katten (B) 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-0
5. Alex Holland (A) vs. Mark Malloy (B) 6-3, 3-6, DNF
6. Henry Jang-Milsten (A) def. Kyle Rosen (B) 6-4, 6-2
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 4, 3, 6 (5 DNF)
