Links: Box Score
HOOKSETT, N.H. – The Merrimack College men's tennis program dropped a hard-fought 5-2 decision on Thursday afternoon to Southern New Hampshire from the Penmen Stadium Tennis Courts in Hooksett, N.H., in a matchup of the Northeast-10 Conference's top-two programs. The contest marked a rematch of both last season's NE10 Championship match as well as the opening round of the 2018 NCAA East Regional. Both programs appear destined to reach the NCAA Tournament once more as Merrimack entered the match as the fourth-ranked team in the East Regional while the Penmen were ranked No. 2 in the most recent NCAA Division II East Regional rankings.
The Basics
Score: SNHU 5,
Merrimack 2
Records: Merrimack (15-7, 7-1 NE10) | SNHU (14-3, 9-0 NE10)
Location: Hooksett, N.H. | Penmen Stadium Tennis Courts
Results
Doubles
Singles
| 1. Tiago Fernandes (SNH) def. Denis Davydov (MERM) 6-4, 6-0 |
| 2. Jonathan Garcia (MERM) def. Willem van Biezen (SNH) 6-2, 7-5 |
| 3. Alex Fedorov (MERM) def. Emmanuel Vacalares (SNH) 6-4, 2-6, 10-4 |
| 4. Bas Van Biezen (SNH) def. A. Mackay Rodriguez (MERM) 6-3, 6-4 |
| 5. Miguel Marreiros (SNH) def. Andre Singer (MERM) 6-0, 6-4 |
| 6. Ricardo Marreiros (SNH) def. Paul Weidinger (MERM) 6-3, 6-2 |
Rapid Recap
- The bottom two flights decided the doubles portion of the match. The Warriors' top duo of junior Denis Davydov and freshman Conrad Koch prevailed at No. 1, 6-3, but the next two matches went in favor of the Penmen by the same scoring margin, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead
- Merrimack's singles lineup was highlighted by wins at the second and third flights. Freshman Jonathan Garcia impressed at No. 2, dispatching his foe in a two-set sweep, 6-2 and 7-5. Junior Alex Fedorov notched a three-set win at the third flight, winning his first set by a two-game margin (6-4) before a convincing 10-4 win in the tiebreaker
- Garcia has now won six of his last seven singles matches, all coming at the second flight. Fedorov notched his ninth singles win in his last 10 tries, including his fourth three-set win during that run
- The Warriors rounded out their singles lineup with Davydov at the top flight, freshmen Alec Mackay Rodriguez and Andre Singer at fourth and fifth singles, respectively, and junior Paul Weidinger at No. 6.
Up Next
The Warriors' regular season finale will be this Saturday at Franklin Pierce with an 11 a.m. start time up in Rindge, N.H.
