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 17^th   
First Round ­
Match 1: #3 Le Moyne 5, #6 Stonehill 0
Match 2: #5 Bentley 5, #4 Franklin Pierce 1  

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

Saturday, April 21^st    
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 100^th 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.