GAMBIER, OH - The 13th ranked NC Wesleyan College men's tennis team split their two matches against ranked opponents at Kenyon College in Ohio on Saturday.
The Bishops first battled hard but fell 7-2 to #1 ranked Case Western Reserve (OH) in their first match Saturday before coming back Saturday evening to defeat #24 Kenyon 6-3.
NCWC 6, KENYON 3
Wesleyan took a 2-1 doubles lead against Kenyon as the third ranked doubles team of seniors Jhonny Acosta and JP Vallejo rolled to an 8-5 win while fellow seniors Max Robinson and Roberto Puig pulled out an 8-5 win at the second doubles line as well. The third doubles team of Thato Holmes and Tshepo Mosarwa unfortunately fell 8-5 at the third line.
In the singles matches, Wesleyan clinched the win with victories from sophomore John Falke at the 2 line, freshman Luca Knese at the 5 line and Acosta at the top spot to go up 5-1. Falke cruised 6-3, 6-3 while Knese got by 6-4, 6-1 and Acosta dominated 6-3, 6-2. Freshman Diego Segovia also won his bout 8-4 at the sixth line while junior Augusto Roca dropped a heartbreaking three-setter, 3-6, 7-6, 8-10.
CWRU 7, NCWC 2
In the first match of the day against the top ranked Spartans (16-2), Wesleyan picked up one doubles win from Robinson and Puig 8-5 while Acosta/Vallejo fell 5-8 and Holmes/Mosarwa dropped a tight 8-6 decision as CWRU led 2-1.
CWRU, however, would then clinch the win with singles wins at the #3, 5 and 6 spots as Vallejo, Knese, and Segovia dropped tough matches including Knese's three set thriller, 6-4, 4-6, 4-6.
Wesleyan picked up a singles win from Acosta 6-4, 6-4 while Falke rallied from a one-set deficit to fall 1-6, 6-1, 6-7 and 4-7 in the tiebreaker. Puig was also tied at a set apiece at the 4th spot before retiring in the final set once the match was clinched.
Wesleyan, who is regionally ranked #3, now sits at 14-3 overall, but had their final Ohio match against #21 Denison College canceled on Sunday afternoon. NCWC will now prepare to face rival Methodist on Wednesday at 4:00 in Fayetteville.
