Fujitani Reaches Finals at ITA Regional Championships

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — A championship match appearance by Midori Fujitani (Tokyo, Japan/International School Bangkok) highlighted Goucher's participation in the USTA/ITA Southeast Regional Championships this weekend.

Fujitani won three consecutive matches in the B4 singles draw before a straight-set defeat in the finals. Britt Shortle (Lake Mary, Fla./Trinity Preparatory School) and Pat Murnin (Salt Lake City, Utah/East) also reached the quarterfinals in the B5 and B6 singles draws, respectively, while Seth Hoesman (Ellicott City, Md./Howard) and Joey Caracappa (Wesley Chapel, Fla./Saddlebrook Preparatory School) progressed to the semifinals of the championship doubles consolation draw.

Fujitani's run began with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 triumph over Muhlenberg's Adam Halpern. He would once again need three sets in his quarterfinals showdown with Chris Magee from Penn St. Harrisburg. After Fujitani took the opening set 6-3, Magee claimed a second-set tiebreaker to send the match to a deciding super tiebreaker, which the Goucher sophomore won by a tight 10-8 margin.

That set him up for a semifinal matchup with Roanoke's Holden Branam, and this time Fujitani needed only two sets before coming away with a 6-1, 7-6 (3) victory. The run finally ended with a 6-2, 6-2 defeat to Clark Chapman from Dickinson in the championship match.

Shortle was matched up against Evan Cuff from Albright in his round of 16 contest, and he emerged with a 6-4, 6-3 win before falling in straight-sets, 6-4, 6-4, to Dickinson's Shawn Diniz. Murnin, meanwhile, required a super tiebreaker before besting Elizabethtown's Nate Dowling 6-1, 4-6, 1-0 (10-7) in the round of 16. He was then defeated 6-2, 6-0 by Justin Panepinto from Washington (Md.).

The Gophers also earned a singles victory in the championship draw, with Hoesman claiming a 1-6, 7-6 (2), 7-5 come-from-behind win over Virginia Wesleyan's Kenny Downing in the first round. He then suffered a 6-1, 6-3 loss to fourth-ranked Ben Hwang from Johns Hopkins in the round of 32.

Goucher had three doubles pairings represented across the championship, B1 and B2 draws. All three were defeated in the first round of the main draw. Hoesman and Caracappa, however, defeated Michael Lukas and Ethan Markman from Washington & Lee 8-6 to earn a quarterfinal berth, and they reached the semis after their next opponents withdrew. Their progress was halted with an 8-3 defeat to Christopher Newport's Michael Dodd and Arttu Fiva in the semifinal round.

The Gophers have one more dual match remaining this fall, a 3 p.m. matchup at McDaniel this Friday.