CLAREMONT, Calif. – The George Fox men's tennis team traveled to California to play in the two-day Stag-Hen Invitational, a tournament full of nationally ranked opponents hosted by Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. On Friday, they played seventh-ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, losing 7-0, and 12th-ranked Gustavus Adolphus, losing 4-3.  

How It Happened - Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
Vahag Pashayan and Eli Mizerski teamed up to play against the Stags' number-one team. The two would put up a tough fight, ultimately losing 7-6 (7-2). On court two, Zach Moore and Ikuho Ebisu faced a tough challenge, losing their matchup 6-2. Hunter Fujimori and Lars Schmassmann lost the third doubles match, 6-1. 

In a battle of two top-15 singles players, No. 12 Eli Mizerski was taking on the number nine ranked player in the nation. The first set was a close battle; Mizerski pushed Advik Mareedu to an extra game, losing 7-6. Mizerski lost the second set 6-1 (7-2). Vahag Pashayan played in the number two spot, losing the first set 7-5. The second set was not as close, with Pashayan losing 6-1. On court three, Hunter Fujimori played another nationally-ranked player, No. 23 Anirudh Gupta. Gupta got the better of Fujimori, winning the first set, 6-1. Fujimori won a couple of additional games in the second set before losing 6-3. After dropping the first set, 6-1, Lars Schmassmann returned to force a battle in set two. Schmassmann lost the second set in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (7-5). Alle Banna played in the number five spot. Both of Banna's sets were close, but in the end losing, 6-4, 6-2. In the number six spot, Jackson Whittaker dropped both sets in his match, losing 6-1, 6-0. 

How It Happened - Gustavus Adolphus 
In the afternoon, the Bruins returned to the court to take on another top-ranked opponent, Gustavus Adolphus. In doubles, all three teams remained the same as they were against the Stags, except for one change. Nanase Ebisu would swap in for his brother Ikuho. Starting in number one singles, Pashayan and Mizerski knew they would have a tough challenge facing the number four doubles team in the nation. The two lost the match, 6-1. Moore and Ebisu lost 6-0, and Schmassmann and Fujimori lost 6-1. 

In singles, Mizerski would lead the Bruins in the number-one spot again. This time, the matchup was not as close, Mizerski dominated the match, winning, 6-2, 6-2, against the 29th-ranked Marco Siviero. Pashayan could not find success in the number two spot, losing 6-1 and 6-0. Alle Banna saw a similar result to earlier in the day in the number five spot, losing 6-2, 6-4. The final three singles matches would require three sets to find the winner. In the third spot, Fujimori won the first set 7-6 before losing the second set with the same score. Fujimori would prevail in the final set to win the match, 1-0 (10-6). On court four, Schmassmann dropped the first set, 6-3, before taking the following two sets, 6-4, 6-3, to win his match. River Apatu saw his first action of the day in the number six spot. In his three-set battle, Apatu dropped the first set 6-3. In the second set, Apatu came out swinging, dominating the set, 6-1, before ultimately losing the third and final set 6-3. The 12th-ranked Gusties proved too much for the Bruins as they lost 4-3. 

Coach's Thoughts
Coming soon.

What's Next
The Bruins will return to the court tomorrow morning at approximately 10:00 a.m. when they play again in the Stag-Hen Invitational.