Competing in a top-tier conference in addition to facing challenging non-conference opponents, the New York University men's tennis team had to battle from start-to-finish during the 2009-10 season.

Under 17th-year head coach Horace Choy, the Violets finished the campaign with a 4-11 match record and an eighth-place finish at the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship. Despite what the numbers may indicate, NYU managed to hold its own against an intimidating schedule.

The Violets opened the season on September 16 with a 9-0 loss to Vassar College, ranked #11 in the ITA Tennis Men's Division III Northeast Regional Poll. The same results befell NYU against Swarthmore College.

After losses to Wheaton College, Middlebury College and UAA foe Brandeis University, the Violets slipped to 0-5 on the season. At the time, Middlebury was ranked #1 in the Northeast and #4 in the nation, while Brandeis checked in at #14 in the region.

Choy and his squad quickly responded, however, producing its first win of the season on March 20, a 5-4 thriller at Drew University. Riding some momentum, NYU garnered a 7-2 victory at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and a 6-3 over Hobart College. Then, in their final regular-season match, the Violets blanked local rival Baruch College 9-0.

Heading into the annual UAA Championship, NYU was seeded #8. Facing top-seeded Washington University, the #2 team in the country, the Violets suffered a 9-0 loss. Next up was #15-ranked University of Chicago, and the result was the same. This time the Violets fell 6-0. Then, in the seventh-place match, NYU met Rochester and closed the season with a 5-0 defeat.

Leading the way for the Violets during the 2009-10 season was junior Jason Sacher, who posted a singles record of 6-13. Fellow junior Matt Gross finished 5-8 while, #P.J. Marranca and Eugene Tsarevskiy# concluded their senior seasons with 5-7 and 5-10 singles records, respectively.

The junior tandem of Gross and Alex Stoler provided NYU its best doubles team, with the duo finishing with a 4-9 record.

“It was a challenging season,” Choy said. “But, playing against top competition should bode well for the future. Our younger players were able to get valuable experience and put us in a better situation for next year.”

Off the court, Marranca, Stoler, and junior Philip Rosenstein received UAA Spring Sport All-Academic honors.