The Bucknell Tournament provided a weekend of individual success for men’s tennis, with team members winning the top three singles brackets. However, the team fell short when it came to doubles play. The Bison hosted some familiar faces on Sept. 26 and 27, including Bloomsburg, Lafayette, and St. Francis (Pa.). The team dominated the field on the first day of competition, with all seven Bison who competed in singles coming away victorious.

“The team had another good showing this week, especially in singles. In general, I feel like we did well, except for the fact that doubles wasn’t nearly what we would like it to be,” Ben Gerber ’18 said.

In Flight A, Daniel Wright ’18 and Maxwell Kane ’18 led the way, each securing a victory for the Orange and Blue. It was Gerber and Octavio Canibe ’15 who netted victories in the Flight B Singles bracket, beating team members from St. Francis and Bloomsburg, respectively. In Flight C, Bryan Adams ’17 and William Szamosszegi ’18 took home wins, and Timber Erskine ’18 rounded out the team’s victories with his win in the Flight D Singles bracket.

The Bison were not quite as successful in doubles matches. Gerber and Canibe lost for the first time as a pair, breaking their eight-match winning streak against a Lafayette duo. Kane and Wright won both of their matches to secure a spot in the finals, as did Szamosszegi and Erskine in their first tournament as partners.

On the second day of competition, the Orange and Blue continued to have individual success. Wright and Kane both won their semifinal matches in Flight A, with Kane winning the title when the two Bison faced each other. Gerber and Canibe also met each other in the finals of Flight B, with Gerber taking home the victory on the day. Adams and Szamosszegi continued the trend, competing against each other in the finals that resulted in a Szamosszegi victory.

None of the team’s doubles pairs were able to bring home a title in the tournament.

“Right now, everyone is trying to improve, and our coach is very experienced in the sport and knows what’s best for us. I have a feeling that we are going to be a hard team to beat when the spring season arrives,” Szamosszegi said.

One Bison did not compete in the tournament this weekend. Nick Bybel ’16 travelled to the ITA All-American Championships in Tulsa, Okla. in order to compete against the top athletes in the country. Bybel received a bye in the first round, and went on to win his first match in the tournament (6-4, 6-4).

The Orange and Blue will compete in the Virginia Fall Classic from Oct. 3-5 in Charlottesville, Va.