Box Score BABSON PARK, Mass.—Tournament Most Outstanding Player Wesley Zhang (Staten Island, N.Y.) recorded the decisive point at number five singles as top-seeded and 13th-ranked Babson College defeated second-seeded MIT, 4-1, in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament final on Monday afternoon at the Babson Tennis Courts. 

With its eighth consecutive victory, Babson improves to 20-2 overall and while claiming its first NEWMAC title since 2021 and the second in program history. Monday's win was also the Beavers' first in school history over the Engineers in the postseason. MIT, while entered the day having won all 24 of its trips to the NEWMAC final, ends the year at 10-10. 

The Beavers took the first point of the match thanks to victories at number one and three doubles. Zhang and first-year Edward Wang (Burr Ridge, Ill.) defeated senior Ryan Xiao (Cary, N.C.) and sophomore Shrish Choudhary (Fremont, Calif.) 6-2, while senior Ole Lepsoe (Oslo, Norway) and junior Alexander Merson (Palisades Park, N.J.) topped the Engineers' paring of graduate student Joseph Li (Naperville, Ill.) and sophomore Adam Sun (Glendale, Ariz.) 6-3 at number one. 

MIT graduate student Kailas Kahler (Pawtucket, R.I.) and sophomore Grant Gallagher (Irvine, Calif.) were leading 5-3 at number two doubles when the point was clinched. 

Babson first singles point came at number six as first-year Sebastian Mendoza (Weston, Fla.) recorded a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Gallagher. Wang followed with a 6-3, 6-2 triumph over Sun at number four to make it 3-0 before Kahler gave the Engineers their first point with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Lepsoe at number one. 

Zhang secured the title for the Beavers and set off a wild celebration with a hard-fought 7-5, 6-4 victory over Choudhary. 

Both teams were leading in one match at the time of decision as Merson won the opening 6-1 and was down 5-2 in the second to MIT sophomore Sidd Marathe (Pune, India) at number three, while Xiao was up 6-4, 3-4 on Beavers' senior Brady Anderson (Rochester, N.Y.) at number two. 

Babson will find out where it is headed for the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament next Monday. 

MATCH NOTES
•    The Beavers, who defeated MIT just once between 1998-2022, has split their last six matches against the Engineers over the last three seasons. 
•    MIT was 49-0 in NEWMAC play prior to Monday's loss and suffered its first conference tournament setback since falling to Coast Guard in the 1995 Constitution Athletic Conference (CAC) final. 
•    Babson has won its last seven conference tournament matches at home and extended its winning streak at the Babson Tennis Courts to 15 with Monday's victory. 
•    The Beavers are now 20-0 on the year when winning the doubles point.