Sipala takes singles title at Brown Inv.
PROVIDENCE – Led by a fantastic performance by rookie Richard Sipala (Quogue, N.Y.), the Bryant University men's tennis competed in the Brown Invitational over the weekend, picking up an individual title and a pair of third-place finishes.
In just his second weekend as a collegiate tennis player, Sipala posted three victories in his singles flight en route to finishing first in his draw. The New York native started the tourney with a dominating 6-2, 6-2 victory over Brenton Arnaboldi of Amherst College. The freshman then posted back-to-back come-from-behind wins over Ian Sims of Marist College in the tournament semifinals, before wrapping up the title with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory over Colgate University's Alan Pleat.
Seventh-year head coach Ron Gendron expected a tough showing against a number of quality opponents over the course of the weekend, and was happy to see Sipala making adjustments from the previous weekend at the Bryant Invitational.
"Richie had a big showing this weekend winning his flight," Gendron said. "It was great to see him get a title in just his second tournament as a collegiate player."
Bryant also saw a third-place finish by senior Peter Hart Callahan (Malvern, Pa.), who went 2-1 in his flight while picking up wins over two Connecticut opponents. He started the tournament with a dominating 7-5, 6-0 win over the Huskies' Teddy Margules, and wrapped up his weekend with a victory over Peter Surovic.
Other highlights came in the doubles flight, as Sipala and senior Daniel Cournoyer (Jefferson, Mass.) teamed up to take home the bronze in their draw. The duo went 1-1 after receiving a first-round bye, and downed Matt Burns and Joshua Palmer of UConn, 8-2, in the third-place match.
Next up for the Bulldogs will be a trip to Storrs, Conn., on Sept. 23-25 in the UConn Invitational before competing in the Northeast Conference Invitational the following weekend.
For continuing coverage of Bryant men's tennis, check back at www.bryantbulldogs.com, and follow the Bulldogs on Twitter @BryantAthletics.