Freshman victories capped an up-and-down weekend of play for the Penn men's tennis team as it sent squads to the Navy and Farnsworth/Princeton Invitational tournaments.
The doubles team comprised of newcomers Justin Lavner and Jimmy Fairbanks led a young squad at the Navy Invitational in Annapolis, Md. The rookie duo went 3-0 at the first doubles position as the Quakers took part in team and individual matches.
"I was surprised," Fairbanks said. "We played very well together."
He and Lavner, a sophomore, won their first doubles match against Rutgers' Greg Schweitzer and Maarten Vissers, 9-8, in the Quakers' 5-2 loss to the Scarlet Knights on Friday.
Freshman Joe Mirabile recorded the lone singles win for the day, defeating Brook Deming, 7-5, 6-4. Mirabile also teamed with fellow freshman Ed Silver to win their No. 3 doubles match, 8-6.
"The freshmen got their first college wins," Penn coach Mark Riley said. "Now, that's over with. It's a big plus."
On Saturday, Penn took on Richmond, and the doubles team of Fairbanks and Lavner posted the only win for the Red and Blue. They defeated Niki Doll and Dan Scrafford, 9-8 (4). Richmond swept the singles and other two doubles matches as Penn was routed, 7-0.
Lavner "has some experience," Fairbanks said. "I learned from a him a little bit. It was good."
The weekend concluded with individual matches, based on the results from the previous days.
Fairbanks and Lavner finished their weekend winning the No. 1 doubles championship, 8-3, against Ryan Osgood and Matt Walton of Navy.
"Jimmy Fairbanks and Justin Lavner did an outstanding job at doubles," Riley said.
The Quakers also sent a squad of players to New Jersey this past weekend to take part in the Farnsworth/Princeton Invitational.
Penn senior captain Ryan Harwood led a squad of returning players to Old Nassau as they competed in an individual tournament. Unfortunately for the Quakers, Harwood dropped his first match, 6-3, 6-2, to Zach Gallin of Cornell.
Junior College transfer Alex Fritz shared the same fate as he lost his opening match to Princeton's Tim Kofol, 6-2, 6-1.
The Quakers have two weeks to practice and further the progress of their young players before they compete in the ECAC Championships in Flushing, N.Y., on Oct. 4-7.
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