ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell men's tennis team kept their Ivy League championship dreams alive by defeating the visiting Princeton Tigers, 5-2 a the Reis Tennis Center on Friday afternoon.  With the win, the Big Red improve to 4-2 in the conference and 13-5 overall.

The Big Red got off to their customary hot start by taking all three doubles matches.  At first singles, the tandem of Kyle Doppelt and Josh Goldstein took a 5-1 lead over Alex Vuckovic and Peter Capkovic and earned the victory when Capkovic suffered an injury and had to retire. Andy Gauthier and Jeremy Feldman then secured the doubles point for Cornell on the strength of a 8-4 victory over Ilya Trubov and Alex Faust. At third doubles, Marc Asch and Mirza Kliz continued their strong play and defeated Yohei Shoji and George Capini, 8-5.

The Big Red picked up a quick second point at fifth singles when Asch made short work of Charlie Brosens, 6-0, 6-1.

The next Big Red player off the court was Goldstein, who put Cornell up 3-0 after defeating Ryan Kim 6-4, 6-1 at second singles. With the win, the Big Red needed only to win one of the remaining four singles matches to secure a victory.

At first singles, Jon Jaklistch and Alex Vuckovic would engage in a battle of wills, with each player being a model of consistency and refusing to give an inch. Ultimately, Jaklistch would fall, 6-4, 6-1.

The Gauthier-Crutchfield match would provide a multitude of fireworks, but would end with the Big Red clinching the match.  After losing the first, Gauthier fought back and got a late break in the second to take the set. In the third, the momentum would continue to switch sides, with both players coming up with some incredible shotmaking.  The set would feature four straight breaks of serve, and after squandering three match points, Gauthier would rally in the tie-break, taking the set 7-4 and winning the match.

At third singles, George Carpini and  Jon Fife would also find themselves locked in a battle. After losing the first set, Fife would bounce back and take the second, 6-4.  In the third, Carpeni was able to break, and took the third, 6-4.

At third singles, Feldman would once again find himself as the last Big Red on the court. Feldman started off strong, taking the first set, but Faust got a late break in the second and rode that a 7-5 set win. Showing a maturity that belies his age, Feldman was able to shake off the second set and come out firing in the third, building a lead that would he would not relinquish, and win the third, 6-3.

The Big Red finish their Ivy League season this Sunday with an away match at Penn at 2 p.m. With a win, and a loss by Columbia and Brown, Cornell can clinch a share of an Ivy League title.


Cornell 5, Princeton 2

Doubles: 
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3

1.Doppelt/Goldstein (Cornell) def. Vuckovic/Capkovic (Princeton), 5-1 (ret.)
2.Feldman/Gauthier (Cornell) def. Trubov/Faust (Princeton), 8-4
3.Asch/Kliz (Cornell) def. Shoji/Carpeni (Princeton), 8-5

Singles
Order of Finish: 5, 2, 1, 6, 3, 4

1.Vuckovic (Princeton) def. Jaklistch (Cornell), 6-4, 6-1
2.Goldstein (Cornell) def. Kim (Princeton), 6-4, 6-1
3.Carpeni (Princeton) def. Fife (Cornell), 6-4, 4-6, 6-4
4.Feldman (Cornell) def. Faust (Princeton), 7-5, 4-6, 6-3
5.Asch (Cornell) def. Brosens (Princeton), 6-0, 6-1
6.Gauthier (Cornell) def. Crutchfield (Princeton), 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4)