Nick Grace
1
Le Moyne LEM (13-5)
5
Winner Merrimack College MERM (14-8)
Le Moyne LEM
(13-5)
1
Final
5
Merrimack College MERM
(14-8)
Winner

Match Recap: Men's Tennis |

Men’s Tennis Advances to Second Straight NE10 Final, 5-1, over Le Moyne Thursday

Links: Box Score  
Video: Mikhail Belov Comments

MIDDLETON, Mass. – Seniors Mikhail Belov and Frank Vega rallied from a 7-5 deficit at first doubles to record a 9-8 victory, guaranteeing a lead for the second-seeded Merrimack College men's tennis program entering singles play during Thursday's Northeast-10 Conference Semifinal match vs. third-seeded Le Moyne at the Northeast Tennis Center in Middleton, Mass. Belov, Vega and sophomore Denis Davydov proceeded to win each of their matches in straight sets, giving the Warriors a 5-1 victory and a rematch with Southern New Hampshire in the NE10 Final set for Saturday in Manchester, N.H.

The Basics
Score: Merrimack 5
, Le Moyne 1
Records: Merrimack (14-8) | Le Moyne (13-5)
Location: Northeast Tennis Center | Middleton, Mass.

2018 NE10 Men's Tennis Championship Schedule 
Tuesday, April 17th   
First Round ­
Match 1: #3 Le Moyne 5, #6 Stonehill 0
Match 2: #5 Bentley 5, #4 Franklin Pierce 1  

Thursday, April 19th  
Semifinals 
Match 3: #2 Merrimack 5, Le Moyne 1
Match 4: #1 Southern New Hampshire 5, #5 Bentley 1

Saturday, April 21st    
Championship ­ 
Match 5: #2 Merrimack at Southern New Hampshire |­ 1:00 p.m.

Results
Doubles
1. Mikhail Belov/Frank Vega (MERM) def. Philip Blythe/Hallam Doney (LEM) 9-8
2. Denis Davydov/Alex Fedorov (MERM) def. Andres Hernandez/Jason Barton (LEM) 8-5
3. Xavier Graells/Tyler Underwood (LEM) def. Tyler Clontz/Paul Weidinger (MERM) 8-2
Singles
1. Mikhail Belov (MERM) def. Philip Blythe (LEM) 6-3, 6-1
2. Denis Davydov (MERM) def. Andres Hernandez (LEM) 6-2, 6-1
3. Frank Vega (MERM) def. Xavier Graells (LEM) 6-4, 6-4
4. Alex Fedorov (MERM) vs. Jason Barton (LEM) 7-6, 5-2, unfinished
5. Tyler Clontz (MERM) vs. Hallam Doney (LEM) 4-6, 4-5, unfinished
6. Paul Weidinger (MERM) vs. Christian Erickson (LEM) 2-1, unfinished

Rapid Recap
  • The doubles portion of the match saw the third flight end first, with Le Moyne taking a 1-0 lead. The all-league second-flight duo of Davydov and junior Alex Fedorov evened the match, winning their final two games to take an 8-5 win
  • One of the best matches of the day came at first doubles. Le Moyne jumped ahead, 7-5, but Belov and Vega recovered. They won three straight games to pull ahead, 8-7, but Le Moyne won on serve to force a tiebreaker. Holding a 4-3 lead and serving, Vega won two straight points to move the Warriors within one point of the flight, and Belov's backhand winner gave the Navy and Gold a 2-1 lead entering singles
  • Davydov's singles match finished first, as the first-year Warrior dominated the second flight (6-2, 6-1). Belov wore down his opponent at the top flight, emerging from the first set with a 6-3 win before taking the final four games of his second set, 6-1
  • For the second straight NE10 Semifinal, third singles clinched the win for the Navy and Gold. Vega posted identical 6-4 triumphs at No. 3 to claim the match
Notes and Notables
  • Belov's doubles win gave the senior his 100th career victory, becoming the seventh Warrior to do so. He joins Vega at the century mark, as both Warriors will finish their careers in the 100-win club
  • The Warriors will get another crack at the top-seeded Penmen, who defeated the Warriors last weekend in the regular season finale. The two programs met in last year's NE10 Final, which was also won by SNHU
  • The Warriors have won three NE10 Championships since 2012, with the last occurrence coming in 2015 – Belov and Vega's freshmen seasons
Up Next:
Merrimack advances to Saturday's NE10 Final, where the Warriors will meet top-seeded Southern New Hampshire at 1 p.m. at the Penmen Stadium Tennis Courts.
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