Valdesolo displayed his trademark skill and agility in the first match. He played well early on, blanking his first opponent Angal Magana of Hobart College in three games with scores of 9-2, 9-0 and 9-5. Valdesolo then advanced to the second round of the tournament. In a slightly tougher match against David Haile of Naval Academy in the round of 16, Valdesolo nonetheless won the contest in four games by scores of 9-3, 7-9, 9-5 and 9-0.
In the quarterfinals, however, Valdesolo encountered a difficult matchup and was ultimately upended by Hobart's Tejvir Rathore in four games. "I was disappointed with the outcome of my match against Rathore. I feel that I could have played better," Valdesolo explained.
Two of these games were particularly close, and Valdesolo was narrowly edged by scores of 10-8 and 10-9. "Carlo played solidly during his second round match against a quick, fit player," said sophomore teammate Mike Strong. "He lost in the next round to the number one player from Hobart, a match Carlo would definitely win if they played again."
After defeating his Jeff opponent, Rathore went on to win the semifinals and play in the championship match, in which he was swept by Gaurav Yadav of Trinity College.
The team finished the season with a 9-8 record, and an impressive national ranking of 11th place. Both the team as a whole, as well as top individual players, progressed through the entire season with remarkable consistency. Rarely did they deviate from their appointed national ranking.
Next year, the team will have to accommodate the loss of valuable senior members Valdesolo, John Holodnak, David Bower and Roger Boulay.