No. 8 Saint Leo Hands Men's Tennis 9-0 Loss
Links: Box Score
SAINT LEO, Fla. – The Merrimack College men's tennis team continued a stretch that will see it begin the spring season against three consecutive opponents ranked among the top-15 in the country according to Intercollegiate Tennis Associated (ITA). On Sunday afternoon in Saint Leo, Fla. the Warriors lost to No. 8 Saint Leo, 9-0.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 0 | Saint Leo 7
Records: Merrimack (1-2) | Saint Leo (7-2)
Location: Saint Leo Tennis Complex | Saint Leo, Fla.
How It Happened
The Navy and Gold entered its matchup against the eight-ranked Lions of Saint Leo shorthanded, as Merrimack sent players out at No. 1-2 doubles and No. 1-5 singles, vacating No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles.
At doubles, Steven Francis (Perth, Australia) and Mikhail Belov (Krasnoarmeyskoy, Russia) were dealt an 8-3 decision. That pair secured Merrimack's lone point in the Warriors last match against No. 14 NYIT. The second pairing of Vine Bellino (Amesbury, Mass.) and Frank Vega (Lima, Peru) did not fair much better, falling 8-1.
At singles, Francis come not overcome his opponent at No. 1, 6-1 and 6-0. Belov and Vega lost in two sets at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, but put up fights in the second frame. Belov, the Northeast-10 Rookie of the Week, lost in the second set 7-5, while Vega dropped his final set by a score of 6-4.
Junior captian Miguel Belfort (Caracas, Venezuela) made his spring debut at No. 5 singles, losing 8-1 in only one set.
Results
Doubles
1. Netanel Alcabas/ Egor Panyushkin (SLM) def. Steven Francis/ Mikhail Belov (MER) 3-8
2. Fons Verberne / Guillaume Vanelven (SLM) def. Frank Vega/Vince Bellino (MER) 1-8
3. Alex Theiler/Jacobo Gonzalez-Tarrio (SLM) def. N/A (MER) Final - Default
Singles
1. Alex Theiler (SLM) def. Steven Francis (MER) 1-6, 0-6
2. Netanel Alcabas(SLM) def. Mikhail Belov (MER) 0-6, 5-7
3. James Defusto (SLM) def. Frank Vega (MER) 1-6, 4-6
4. Fons Verberne (SLM) def. Vince Bellino (MER) 1-6, 1-6
5. Jacobo Gonzalez-Tarrio (SLM) def. Miguel Belfort (MER) 1-8
6. Oscar Nurmio (SLM) def. N/A (MER) Final - Default
Up Next
The Warriors will be back in action from Florida tomorrow, where they will battle another ranked opponent in No. 13 Rollins at 3 p.m. in Winter Park, Fla.
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