Feb. 21, 2009

Complete Results

PRINCETON, N.J. - Team captain Christopher Zipf (Gladwyne, Pa.) fought his way back from a 2-0 deficit to take a 3-2 match victory and lead the 13th-seeded Navy squash team to a 6-3 win over Amherst Saturday evening at the 2009 College Squash Association Team Championship in Princeton, N.J. After dropping a 7-2 decision to Bates in the opening round of the tournament on Friday, the Mids regrouped on Saturday and will now play Brown in the 13th/14th-place bout on Sunday at 5:30 pm (The Lawrenceville School).

"I was really happy with the way we were able to bounce back and put forth a great effort against a talented Amherst team," said ninth-year Navy head coach Craig Dawson, whose Midshipmen improved to 27-7. "It was a very close, hard-fought match and I was proud of Kit and the poise he showed in coming back from being two games down in his match."

Playing one another for the first time since the 2006 campaign, Navy found the Lord Jeffs to be a formidable opponent in the consolation bracket. Junior Nils Mattsson (Spring House, Pa.) won his sixth consecutive match when he dealt Amherst's Drew Blacker a 9-2, 9-3, 9-2 loss and gave the Mids a win at the No. 1 position.

The Mids tacked on a win at the No. 2 slot when Allan Lutz (McLean, Va.) recorded a 9-1, 9-2, 10-9 win over Jerome Giovinazzo. For Lutz, it was his 25th win of the season, putting him in a tie for the third-most wins by a Navy player under Dawson's leadership.

Earning his second straight win at the CSA Team Championship was junior Ben Mantica (Binghamton, N.Y.), who produced a 9-3, 9-5, 9-0 victory over Steve Severson at No. 3.

Meanwhile, senior Allen Hartley (Charleston, W.Va.) improved to 4-1 all-time in championship history after dealing Todd Lavine a 9-7, 9-6, 9-0 loss. Hartley was the lone Navy player to go undefeated at last year's championship, however, suffered a setback in Friday's opening round. He owns a 25-6 record this season, topping 20 wins for the first time in his career.

It was Zipf who clinched the match for the Mids, however, after winning just one point in the opening two games, it didn't appear things were in his corner. As the captain and backbone of the team, Zipf battled his way back, point by point, game by game, until he captured an amazing five-game come-from-behind win over Thomas Rapisarda.

Navy's final win of the day came by way of rookie Clayton Young (River Forest, Ill.) at the No. 9 slot, who claimed a 10-8, 9-2, 9-0 win over Jacob Glass.

The Mids nearly had a seventh win, but just as Zipf turned the tables on his foe, so, too, did Amherst's Brad Corbin against Navy's Tommy McNamara (New York, N.Y.). The Navy sophomore had built a 2-0 lead by turning in back-to-back 9-3 wins. Corbin, however, knotted up the match by winning two in a row (9-5, 9-6) before taking the fifth and deciding match, 9-6

Navy 6, Amherst 3 • Feb. 21, 2009 • Princeton, N.J.1   Nils Mattsson (N) def. Drew Blacker (A)          9-2, 9-3, 9-22   Allan Lutz (N) def. Jerome Giovinazzo (A)        9-1, 9-2, 10-93   Ben Mantica (N) def. Steve Severson (A)          9-3, 9-5, 9-04   Ben Bishop (A) def. Brad Seidel (N)              10-9, 9-4, 3-9, 9-35   Allen Hartley (N) def. Todd Lavine (A)           9-7, 9-6, 9-06   Kevin Cecala (A) def. Justin Langan (N)          9-4, 5-9, 9-2, 9-07   Christopher Zipf (N) def. Thomas Rapisarda (A)   1-9, 0-9, 9-4, 9-1, 9-78   Brad Corbin (A) def. Tommy McNamara (N)          3-9, 3-9, 9-5, 9-6, 9-69   Clayton Young (N) def. Jacob Glass (A)           10-8, 9-2, 9-0