Emily Evancho

The men’s tennis team battled through three matches against Mount St. Mary’s, Navy, and Villanova. The team’s efforts only secured one 4-3 victory at Mount St. Mary’s on March 27, while suffering a 5-2 home defeat at the hands of Navy on March 29 and a 4-3 road loss to Villanova on March 31.

“The season did not start out as well as we would have liked, but we continue to work extremely hard,” Irwin Reibeisen ’14 said. “We have played better in our most recent matches, but it is still a work in progress. We will look to build off of these experiences and get a good week of practice before we have two important Patriot League matches this weekend. Our ultimate goal is to be playing our best tennis in the Patriot League Tournament.”

In the match against Mount St. Mary’s, Nick Bybel ’16 and Aidan Lynch ’14 both helped to clinch the victory with a 6-1, 6-1 decision in No. 1 doubles play. The No. 2 and 3 doubles teams were not as successful as both suffered 8-3 defeats. In singles play, the triumph was largely the Bison’s with only two losses. Bybel, in No. 1 singles, captured dual 6-1 victories while No. 3 Bryan Adams ’17 (7-6, 6-4) and No. 6 Reibeisen (6-3, 7-6) both persevered through close matches that ended in success. The team’s performance helped improve its overall record to 2-9.

The Orange and Blue did not have the same success in the next matches against Navy and Villanova. The Bison faced Navy in cold, rainy conditions which forced the match to be played on the University’s inside tennis courts. The event was a battle of extremely close doubles matches that proved the Bison’s skill and perseverance. No. 1 doubles team of Bybel and Lynch barely missed their victory in a 9-8 loss, while No. 2 doubles team of Adams and Chris Tortora ’14 succumbed in an 8-5 defeat. Unfortunately, the skill was not enough to subdue Navy as the Midshipmen swam away with the win.

Play against Villanova went much the same way. The Bison were able to capture the doubles points in this match by winning all three doubles matches, only to lose their footing in the singles play with four defeats. The losses to Navy and Villanova brought the team’s overall record to 2-11 (1-1 Patriot League).

“This has been a tough stretch for our team, with bad weather altering our schedule on a daily basis, but we are continuing to see improvement every day and that is the most important thing,” Lynch said. “I know that this team will only get better and we are now focusing on a big Patriot League weekend. Our team is ready.”

The Bison will hope to improve when they return to their home court tomorrow to face Colgate at 1 p.m. On Sunday, they will challenge Boston University, also on their home court.