MEDIA, Pa. – The No. 26 Haverford College men's tennis team (1-0) opened 2026 competition with a 7-0 victory against UC Santa Cruz. The match, which took place at the UNLTD Tennis Academy, saw the Fords deliver a strong showing in doubles play and carry that momentum into singles action en route to a decisive win.
Haverford opened the afternoon with a strong start in doubles play. At third doubles, Niki Lavu and Zach Miano earned a decisive 6-2 victory over Hari Raghavan and Peter Liang. Marko Arboleda and Teo Bortan followed at second doubles, defeating Gavin Sonntag and Caden Wong, 6-4. Stefan Johnson and Robbie Vazquez capped the sweep at first doubles with a 7-5 triumph against Benjamin Wang and Rocco Melendez.
The momentum carried into singles competition. At fourth singles, Vazquez was dominant in a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Raghavan. Johnson followed with a 6-2, 7-5 win against Wong at sixth singles.
Arboleda secured a 6-4, 6-4 decision over Wang at first singles, while Lavu battled past Sonntag at second singles, earning a 7-6, 6-1 win. Bortan added a 6-2, 6-2 victory against Liang at fifth singles.
At third singles, Owen Kilmer rounded out the match with a three-set comeback, defeating Melendez, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
The Fords' will return to action for a two-match day on Saturday, February 21, taking on No. 24 Christopher Newport (11 a.m.) and Shenandoah (3 p.m.) at the James River Country Club in Newport News, Va.
