EWING, N.J. – The TCNJ men's tennis came up just shy in its bid to upset No. 26 NYU on Saturday, dropping a 4-3 decision in an epic battle in which all six singles courts were decided by a third-set super tiebreak.
 
Nathan Chan was a double winner for the Lions (5-3), who suffered their third 4-3 defeat of the spring. This one was an unforgettable duel inside the Rec Center.
 
TCNJ got its upset efforts off to a fast start by locking up the doubles point. Chan and Alberto Thomas won 6-2 at number two, the only non-nail-biter of the afternoon, and Harrison Maitland-Carter and Asa Wong clinched the point in a tiebreaker over Bryan Hui and Niklas von Hellens, 7-6 (2).
 
Singles was a remarkable battle of wills, with all six matches going the distance.
 
NYU (4-1) took the first three to finish, coming back from a set down on the No. 1, No. 2, and No. 4 courts.
 
That meant TCNJ needed the last three matches to go its way, and the blue and gold nearly pulled it off.
 
Chan held off Louis Frowein 7-5, 2-6, 10-8 at number three, and Sidd Arudi evened the match at 3-3 with a 4-6, 6-3, 10-8 defeat of Jeh-Lei Fan at number five.
 
It all came down to the sixth flight, where Cooper Kline managed to rally past Olufela Fieulleteau for a 4-6, 6-4, 10-4 match-clinching triumph.
 
NOTES

• Maitland-Carter took over 10^th place on the all-time charts with his 116^th career victory
• Thomas moved into a tie for 16^th all-time with his 57^th career doubles win

UP NEXT

• The Lions have two weeks off before another nationally ranked opponent comes to town on March 28, when TCNJ will play host to No. 35 Skidmore