The New York University men's tennis team opened its 2026-27 season at the Lions Tournament with competition against players from Ithaca College and The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) on Saturday, September 19, in Ewing, NJ.

The Violets commanded the courts in the non-team-scoring competition, winning 12 of the 16 singles matches and six of the seven doubles matches. 

In singles play, Boren Zheng (6-1, 6-4), Vincent Chang (6-4, 7-5), Seiya Kudo (6-2, 6-1), all won against Ithaca College in straight sets, while Maciej Zarebski (6-2, 0-6, 10-7), Ignas Grusnius (2-6, 7-5, 13-11), and Kaustav Guttikonda all won in three sets via 10-point match tiebreakers (6-1, 3-6, 10-6). 

In their second match, the Violets dominated against the host Lions. Kenn Wijesekara secured a rapid 6-0, 6-0 victory, Kudo played two separate singles matches and won both.  Grusnius, Bryan Hui, Boris Slesarev, and Rafael Zard also secured singles victories.

In overall doubles play, the Violets posted a 6-1 record, including sweeping TCNJ 4-0. The pair of Andy Chen and Wijesekara went undefeated, winning against both opponents (6-3, 6-4), while the pairings of Hui and Zheng, Hui and Slesarev, Grusnius and Guttikonda, and Chang and Zard each claimed victories.

"The players battled through a demanding day on the road, earning hard-fought victories over both Ithaca and TCNJ," said Assistant Coach Ron Moreno. "With an early start and a trek to New Jersey we faced challenging circumstances. But, our intensity and competitive spirit never wavered."

NYU returns to action for the first day of the ITA Northeast Championships on Friday, September 25. The three-day tournament will be held in Saratoga Springs, NY.