The Emory men’s tennis team dominated the ITA South Regional Championships from Sept. 21-23 at the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College (Ga.). The team started hot on Friday, with seven of the eight competing singles players winning their first two matches and advancing to the Round of 16.
The Eagles occupied the last three of the four spots in the singles tournament, with seniors Jonathan Jemison and Adrien Bouchet and freshman Andrew Ennes advancing to the semifinals.
After Jemison defeated junior Ritwik Chatterjee of Rhodes College (Tenn.) in the semifinals, he matched up against freshman teammate Andrew Esses, who had defeated Bouchet in the semifinals. Jemison defeated his teammate, 6-3, 6-0 in the finals.
The four doubles teams also experienced success at the tournament. All four teams made the semifinals. Jemison and Bouchet won the doubles title over senior James Spaulding and sophomore Hayden Cassone, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, marking Bouchet’s second consecutive year claiming the doubles title.
Sophomore Sahil Raina said he wasn’t surprised by how well the team performed and praised how Head Coach John Browning prepared the team.
“[Browning] trains us very hard,” Raina said. “We’re always the most fit team going into every tournament. The most fit, hydrated, ready to go, stamina and endurance wise.”
Both Jemison and Bouchet were named the University Athletic Association Men’s Tennis Co-Athletes of the Week for their performances this past weekend.
For Jemison, one of the most decorated tennis players in Emory’s history, the event marked his second straight ITA South Regional Championship singles title and his fourth appearance in the championship match overall. His doubles victory was also his second ITA doubles championship and his third appearance in the tournament.
Browning called Jemison’s achievements “remarkable.”
“It’s an amazing accomplishment,” Browning said. “I’ve been able to watch him grow since he was 18 years old and [see him become] a mature competitor on the court and a wonderful ambassador for Emory.”
Though the Eagles dominated the tournament, Browning believes the team still has room to grow.
“[The tournament] was a really good starting point, but like I said, we have a long way to go and everybody has to commit to getting better physically [and] mentally in the next three months,” Browning said.
In the B Flight portion of the tournament, sophomore Alec Rabinowitz bested freshman teammate Connor Genschaw, 7-5, 6-4, to win the singles tournament on Sept. 23. Raina and Genschaw captured the doubles crown with an 8-3 victory over freshman Ryan Wax and junior Dane Hawthorne of Sewanee: The University of the South (Ga.) on Sept. 22.
Jemison and Bouchet will advance to the ITA Cup from Oct. 11-14 at the Rome Tennis Center.
Ryan Callahan (he/him) (22C) is from Richboro, Pennsylvania, majoring in philosophy, politics, and law. Callahan previously served as a managing editor, the Wheel's sports editor and is also the co-president of Emory's Pre-Law Society. He is currently an English tutor at Ringle, and previously interned for his state representative and district attorney. If he's not at Kaldi's, you can catch him complaining about the Sixers or replaying the Batman: Arkham games.
