From University of Chicago Athletics
For the fifth-straight year, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Central Region doubles title would go to a Maroon. The question on Wednesday afternoon was, which University of Chicago men's tennis tandem would it be?
It was an all-Maroon final on the Stagg Tennis Courts as junior Tyler Raclin and sophomore Jeremy Yuan took on senior Charlie Pei and first-year Joshua Xu. The veteran combo of Raclin/Yuan ended up clinching their second ITA regional title in-a-row by scores of 6-3, 6-1.
As defending champs, Raclin/Yuan came in as the No. 1-seed in the 64-team draw. Pei and Xu were the No. 12 seeds. Both tandems went 5-0 at last weekend's regional in St. Louis to setup Wednesday's showdown.
Pei/Xu captured the opening two games of the match, but once Raclin/Yuan got going, the momentum snowballed. Four-straight games gave them control, and a break and a hold closed out the set 6-3. Raclin/Yuan went on to grab a 3-0 lead in the second set and soon finished at 6-1.
The win marks Raclin's third-straight ITA doubles title – two with Yuan and one with Max Hawkins. The UChicago duo also earned ITA All-American status as a result. They will next take on the other NCAA Division III regional champions in the ITA Oracle Cup from Oct. 11-14 on Berry College's campus.
"The team had a great tournament on the doubles side with three teams advancing to the semifinals and two other teams securing some great wins of their own," said Head Coach Jay Tee. "To win the regional doubles championship five years in-a-row is something that we take great pride in and work hard for. In the finals, Jeremy and Tyler were just a little too solid and played like a team that has been together for awhile. Charlie and Josh had a great tournament for only being together for a couple weeks and will only get better as the season goes on. All in all, we are happy with where we are at and we're looking forward to improving daily in anticipation of the spring season beginning in January."