Bentley Rallies for 5-4 Win vs. Women's Tennis Saturday at Brandeis

Bentley Rallies for 5-4 Win vs. Women's Tennis Saturday at Brandeis

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WALTHAM, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's tennis team took at 2-1 lead into singles play, but the host Bentley University Falcons rallied to win four of six matches and come away with a 5-4 win on Saturday afternoon at a Northeast-10 match held at Brandeis University

The Basics
 Score: Bentley 5, Merrimack 4
Records: Merrimack (7-4, 7-4 NE-10) | Bentley (8-3, 8-3 NE-10)
Location: Rieger Tennis Courts | Waltham, Mass.

NE-10 Postseason Outlook
 The top-six programs qualify for the NE-10 Championship with the top-two seeds receiving byes to the semifinals; Merrimack clinches a postseason berth if the Warriors win Tuesday's match at Saint Michael's

1. Stonehill (10-0)
2. Assumption (9-2)
3. Southern New Hampshire (7-2)
4. Bentley (8-3)
5. Adelphi (7-3)
6. Merrimack (7-4)
7. Saint Michael's (5-3)
8. Saint Anselm (5-5)
9. Le Moyne (4-6)
10. Franklin Pierce (3-9)
11. New Haven (2-10)
12. American Int'l (1-10)
13. Saint Rose (0-11)

How It Happened (Doubles)

  • No. 1 – Senior Grace Messina (Caracas, Venezuela) and sophomore Mana Seifaei (North York, Ontario) got the Warriors off to a good start, winning at first doubles by an 8-2 margin.
  • No. 2 – As they've been playing the past few weeks, juniors Danielle Dunn (Middleton, Mass.) and Mackenzie Blair (Thomaston, Conn.) had their match at No. 2 come down to the wire, but the Falcons prevailed by an 8-6 score to salvage one doubles point
  • No. 3 – Sophomore Lauren Persson (Barnstable, Mass.) and freshman Mia Briggs (York, Maine) ensured the Warriors had a lead entering singles with a 8-2 victory at the third flight

How It Happened (Singles)

  • No. 1 – Messina dominated at the first flight, only losing one game in a 6-0, 6-1 victory to pick up her 10ths singles win of the year in conference play
  • No. 2 – Seifaei moved the Warriors within one point of the match with a straight-set victory at the second flight, 6-0 and 6-4
  • No. 3 – The Falcons depth proved to win out, as the hosts won at No. 3-6 to prevail. Persson won her opener, 6-2, but Bentley surged back to win the last two sets
  • No. 4 – At the fourth flight, Dunn won two games in each set, but the Falcons won in straight frames
  • No. 5 – Blair rallied to closely contest the second set after falling in the first, but a 6-4 decision gave the Falcons the victory
  • No. 6 – Despite her strong debut season to date, Briggs faltered at the sixth flight in straight sets (6-1, 6-1)

Results
 Doubles
1. Grace Messina/Mana Seifaei (MER) def. Rachel Petrini / Katie Tyman (BEN) 8-2
2. Hannah Fabianiski/Katie Brandow (BEN) def. Mackenzie Blair/Danielle Dunn (MER) 8-6
3. Mia Briggs/Lauren Persson (MER) def. Corrie MacLean / Alexia Petruzziello (BEN) 8-2

Singles
1. Grace Messina (MER) def. Rachel Petrini (BEN) 6-0, 6-1
2. Mana Seifaei (MER) def. Hannah Fabianiski (BEN) 6-0, 6-4
3. Tiffany Sucharek (BEN) def. Lauren Persson (MER) 2-6, 6-3, 6-4
4. Katie Tyman (BEN) def. Danielle Dunn (MER) 6-2, 6-2
5. Susan Stowe (BEN) def. Mackenzie Blair (MER) 6-0, 6-4
6. Katie Brandon (BEN) def. Mia Briggs (MER) 6-1, 6-1

Up Next
 The Warriors conclude their regular season on Tuesday when Merrimack travels to Saint Michael's to face the Purple Knights at 3 p.m.

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For continuing coverage of Merrimack College Athletics, visit MerrimackAthletics.com and follow the Warriors on Twitter and on Facebook.

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