Results
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's tennis team won the doubles point but dropped four of six singles matches on Friday, suffering a 4-3 loss to Bryant at the East Hartford Tennis Club in Northeast Conference action. The Knights fall to 0-1 (0-1 NEC), while the Bulldogs even their record at 3-3 (1-0 NEC).
The Knights, who had not played in live competition since the ITA Regional Championships in October, started the match on the right foot by winning the doubles point.
FDU's No. 2 doubles team of senior
Yuri Gricheno (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Colegio Amorim) and freshman
Markus Sjoberg (Tyreso, Sweden/Varmdo Gymnasium) picked up an 8-7(7-3) victory over Bryant's Ernesto Arguello and Juan Gonzalez-Paz. Another victory by junior
Dominic Devaux-Lovell (St. Lucia, West Indies/Heritage Delray Beach) and sophomore
Julien Philippe (Paris, France/Saint Honoré d’Eylau) against Max Vogt and Josh Rubinstein, 8-5, at No. 3 doubles helped the Knights take a 1-0 lead heading to singles.
Sophomore
Arvis Berzins (Adazi, Latvia/Riga Language School) cruised to a straight-set 6-2, 6-1 win over Zac Morris in No. 1 singles play for his sixth singles win of the year. At No. 2 singles, senior
Ibrahim Shams (Cairo, Egypt/Manor House) took down Vogt, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, for his fourth victory in singles this season.
The Bulldogs won singles matches No. 3-6 to come away with the 4-3 victory.
"We lost to a formidable Bryant team," Head Coach
Jonathan Buchman said. "However, not having our top six players available for the match, as well as having not played any matches since October hurt us."
The Knights will look to get back to their winning ways with a nonconference match at Princeton on Saturday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m.