Men's Tennis Bests Eckerd, 7-2, in First Florida Match
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - The Merrimack men's tennis team captured its third-consecutive victory Tuesday afternoon, downing Eckerd 7-2 in non-conference action to kick off its trip to Florida. The win improves the Warriors to 7-2 on the year while the Tritons tumble to 0-12 overall.
"I thought that we played very well today in doubles and singles," said head coach Sean Tully. "We went out and competed while playing great tennis. We'll look to keep things going Thursday against a good team."
With a pair of victories in doubles play, Merrimack owned a 2-1 lead at the start of singles action. The Warriors top tandem of Max Eppley (Malaga, Spain) and Sean Pahler (Rumson, NJ) cruised to an 8-1 win. Petar Golijanin (Novi Sad, Serbia) and Chris Toegemann (Narragansett, RI) picked up an 8-4 victory at the No. 3 position. At the second doubles slot, Chris Barnhart (Longmeadow, MA) and Vince Bellino (Amesbury, MA) dropped an 8-4 decision.
Merrimack earned five wins in singles play to seal the match. Golijanin prevailed 6-4, 6-2 at the No. 2 spot while Bellino posted a pair of 6-2 wins at the fourth position. Pahler and Toegemann rolled to 6-1, 6-0 victories at the fifth and sixth slots, respectively.
Eppley split the first two sets at the No. 1 position to send the match to a third-set super-tiebreaker. The senior claimed a 6-3 win in the first frame before a losing a tiebreaker in the second. Eppley triumphed 10-6 in the super-tiebreaker to win the match.
The Warriors will resume play in the Sunshine State with a match at Florida Southern March 22.
RESULTS
Doubles
1. Eppley/Pahler (MER) def. Randazzo/Felman (ECK) 8-1
2. Ohlsen/Durley (ECK) def. Barnhart/Bellino (MER) 8-4
3. Golijanin/Toegemann (MER) def. Levy/Breece (ECK) 8-4
Singles
1. Eppley (MER) def. Randazzo (ECK) 6-3, 6-7 (3), 10-6
2. Golijanin (MER) def Hill (ECK) 6-4, 6-2
3. Felman (ECK) def. Barnhart (MER) 7-5, 7-5
4. Bellino (MER) def. Ohlsen (ECK) 6-2, 6-2
5. Pahler (MER) def. Levy (ECK) 6-1, 6-0
6. Toegemann (MER) def. Breece (ECK) 6-1, 6-0
