The Elizabethtown College men’s tennis team made their debut and played their 2015 home opener Sunday, March 29 against Moravian College, a formal Landmark Conference rival. Although the weather had interfered and resulted in the rescheduling of previous matches, the team played their best on the campus’ Alumni Courts and finished with a score of 3-6.
“I was disappointed we lost but happy with how we played,” Coach Matt Helsel said. ” We kept fighting hard. It was really good we ended positively.”
The singles competition was neck and neck while both Etown and Moravian won 3 singles matches. Junior Nathan Dowling, junior Evan Hinkley and first-year Michael Yost defeated their opponent in the singles competition.
“Mike Yost has a nice day and it was a big win for him. Downing also did great and played strong. Alex Machalick did really well” Helsel said. “We are a lot better than the record we have, I am overall very happy and proud of how the team played.”
In the doubles competition, the Blue Jays fought their hardest but their attempts to score were ultimately unsuccessful. “We struggled with doubles but Yost and Marty Rodgers brought us a comeback” said Helsel.
The team was scheduled to travel to Juniata College on Friday, March 27 in Huntingdon, Pa and a home game was scheduled against the United States Merchant Marine Academy on Saturday, March 28.
On their spring break trip to Hilton Head Island, S.C. earlier in March, the Blue Jays dropped three matches by 5-4 scores and wanted their first win of the season. No. 2 and No. 6 singles were victorious points when sophomores Alex Machalick and Dowling both won a pair of matches.
Moravian came off a 7-2 victory at Catholic on Saturday March 28, pushing the Greyhounds into first place at the conference at 2-0. The Greyhounds swept doubles play from the Cardinals and then went 4-2 in singles. All three doubles teams who competed are on multiple-match winning streaks, while singles regular Lewis Cooper is riding a four-match winning streak as an individual.
Etown holds a 14-11 advantage in the all-time series, winning 5-4 when the teams last met on March 25 2007.
On Tuesday, March 31 the Blue Jays will head to Susquehanna University for their first Landmark road match. The first serve is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. The next home match will be Thursday, April 2 against Lebanon Valley College.
