Playing third singles, GA senior Matt Rojas follows through on a shot. (Photo by Tom Utescher)

by Tom Utescher

Going into their final Inter-Ac tennis match last Tuesday, the teams from Penn Charter and Germantown Academy had each defeated league rivals Malvern Prep and Springside Chestnut Hill, and both the Quakers and Patriots had lost to Episcopal Academy and 2018 champion Haverford School.

That meant that third place in the final standings was on the line in last week’s encounter at Penn Charter, and host PC prevailed, 4-3. The Patriots won the top two singles matches and the fourth doubles flight, but the Quakers claimed the four bouts in between. After six contests were completed, they led 4-2, and in the last match on the courts Germantown senior Edik Pribitkin made the final tally closer by winning at first singles through a third-set super-tiebreaker.

In the other singles flights, Penn Charter sophomore Charlie Jordan-Weinstein and freshman Joshua John had switched spots from their positions earlier in the season. Jordan-Weinstein, now playing number two, split 6-4 sets with fellow 10th-grader Alex Yan of GA, then Yan won the third, 6-0. The Quakers’ John also picked up momentum as his match progressed, and he won 7-5, 6-0 over the Patriots’ number three, senior Matt Rojas.

Sophomore Charlie Jordan-Weinstein won for Penn Charter in the second singles flight. (Photo by Tom Utescher)

Charter secured the top two doubles flights in straight sets. At number one, junior Tom Bradbeer and senior Justin Ko topped visiting senior Fisher Rhoades and sophomore Jason Wang, 6-4, 6-3. PC seniors Jake Cutler and Alex Shipon were 6-2, 6-0 winners against two 12th-graders from GA, Josh Felgoise and Reid Becker.

Two more Quakers seniors, Nigel George and Josh Toll, took the opening set at third doubles, 6-3, then junior Grant Griswold and sophomore Luke Abraham of GA rebounded to win the second set, 6-1. The Quakers’ combo then wrapped up the win in a 6-4 third set.

Charter’s doubles dominance did not extend to the fourth flight, where sophomore Kenny Gong and junior Jason Chee of the visiting side earned a 6-1, 6-3 decision over PC juniors David Garnick and Rohan Bhambhani. Off the courts, Garnick had recently garnered a significant victory when he was elected president of Penn Charter’s student government.

The last match to conclude was the first singles bout, in which the Patriots’ Pribitkin won the first set, 6-1, and PC senior Ben Swanson took the second, 6-3. Because the hosts had already attained a 4-2 overall lead to clinch the team victory, there was a super tiebreaker instead of a full third set in this last match. Pribitkin got ahead early and went on to win, 10-3.