PHS Grads Led Kenyon in NCAA Tennis Competition

Two former Pikesville tennis players had a big week while competing together at Kenyon College in Gambier, OH.

Paul Burgin and Michael Razumovsky helped Kenyon advance to the Division III national championships, where Emory rallied to edge the Lords, 5-3.

But both former then came back in a big way in the singles competition. 

Razumovsky, a freshman, played Carnegie Mellon of Pittsburgh's Duke Miller and beat the No. 16 player in Division III by the score of 6-3, 7-5.

After that, Razumovsky kept on rolling, rallying after losing the first set to beat Devin Nerenberg of UC-Santa Cruz, 3-6, 6-2, 6-0.

Nerenberg was the top-ranked player in the West region. That victory gave Razumovsky a 22-6 record this season and extended his winning streak to 10. He became just the fourth player in school history to make it to the third round of the NCAA tournament. 

He pushed hard again on Friday but came up a little short, losing to Washington-Louis’s Adam Putterman in three sets.

Burgin beat Tommy Meyer of Pomona-Pitzer in Claremont, CA (No. 20 nationally), 6-1, 7-6 in the first round. After that, Burgin dropped a second-round match to Luis Rattenhuber of Amherts, 6-4, 6-2. 

Both players came off of strong Pikesville careers.

Burgin had finished second in the state as a senior three years ago, and Razumovsky won the state crown as a junior in 2010 but couldn’t defend it last year because of injuries.

Former Pikesville tennis coach Jerry Dresner has been following the players and said both guys love life at Kenyon, and it’s a good situation for each.

"There’s a lot of spirit on that team, and I think that’s been crucial to their success," Dresner said. "Both Paul and Michael are very smart players, and they’ve become quite adept at playing under pressure. I’m not surprised that they’re excelling at a national tournament."