ANNAPOLIS, Md. –– Road matches against two Patriot League opponents are on the schedule for the Navy men's tennis team this weekend. The Mids (23-13, 2-0) will split their squad into two for 11 a.m. matches on Saturday at Bucknell (7-10, 1-1) and at Holy Cross (4-12, 0-6).
"The upcoming weekend matches will be very competitive," said Navy head coach
Chris Garner. "Both Bucknell and Holy Cross have been improving as the spring season has progressed. I know they are looking forward to the opportunity to playing us, so we will need to be prepared to compete for each point."
Navy earned a 4-1 victory over Boston U. last week to improve to 2-0 in league play this spring. The Mids won the first two doubles matches to finish –– the third was tied at 5-5 when play was stopped –– and three straight set singles matches to come away with the win. Navy was one game away from earning another singles victory when play was halted due to the overall outcome being decided.
One of the singles wins against the Terriers was recorded by
Derrick Thompson (Fr., Towson, Md.). His straight set win at the No. 2 flight raised his record to a team-best 16-2 in dual matches. Meanwhile,
Jack Dabek (Fr., Dublin, Ohio) and
Andrew Ton (So., Milpitas, Calif.) combined for a 6-2 win at No. 1 doubles to improve to 8-1 as a tandem this spring.
Navy and Bucknell have both played Hofstra, La Salle, Saint Joseph's, Drexel, Temple and Morgan State this season. The Mids have defeated all six of those foes and the Bison have compiled a 3-3 record in their efforts versus those opponents. Bucknell most recently defeated Morgan State by the score of 5-2, which was the same score in Navy's victory over the Bears.
Bucknell opened league play with a 4-1 loss to Army and also won a 4-0 decision over Holy Cross.
The Mids defeated the Bison, 7-0, last season, in a match much closer than the final score indicates. Navy won the doubles point to take a 1-0 lead, but two of the three wins came in tiebreakers. The Mids also won each of the six singles matches in straight sets, with five of the victories featuring close contests.
Holy Cross has lost its league matches to Colgate, Army, Bucknell, Lafayette, Loyola and Boston U.
