TROY, N.Y. – The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) men's tennis team battled through a tightly contested Liberty League matchup at Sharp Courts, ultimately falling to Vassar by a narrow 4-3 score.
The match opened with a highly competitive doubles session, where all three contests were closely played. At the top position,
Tsubasa Okada and
Tasmay Shah pushed their opponents to a tiebreak before falling 7-6 (7-5), while
Sid Srinivasan and
Gustave Viennet also forced a tiebreak at No. 3 doubles before dropping a 7-6 (7-2) decision. At No. 2,
Debarshi Sen and
Felix Puyplat competed in a close match, falling 6-4, as Vassar secured the doubles point.
RPI responded with a strong showing in singles play, claiming three victories across the top of the lineup. At No. 1 singles, Okada delivered a standout performance, winning a tightly contested first set in a tiebreak 7-6 (8-6) before pulling away for a 6-1 second-set victory. Shah followed with a dominant effort at No. 2 singles, earning a 6-4, 6-0 win to even the match.
The Engineers also found success at No. 3 singles, where Viennet battled through a three-set contest. After dropping the opening set 4-6, he responded with a 6-4 win in the second before closing out the match in a 10-4 super tiebreak, giving RPI its third point of the afternoon.
Elsewhere in the lineup, Srinivasan competed at No. 4 singles, while Sen and Puyplat rounded out the lineup at the fifth and sixth positions, respectively, each facing tough opposition.
The Engineers will next compete in the Liberty League Championships, which run Friday through Sunday at the Reis Tennis Center in Ithaca.