LEXINGTON, Va. – The 19th-ranked Washington and Lee men's tennis team dropped 4-of-5 singles matches to let 29th-ranked Mary Washington complete a comeback for a 5-4 win.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Generals (6-4) went into singles play with a 2-1 lead after victories came at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. First-year
Heys Parker and senior
Josh Rassin were victorious, 8-6, at No. 2, while junior
Eli Hirshberg and senior
James Kurani downed Artis Hart and Jack Riordan, 8-5, at No. 3. At the top spot, juniors
Evan Erb and
Will Kistler nearly completed the doubles sweep, but Rishi Charan Shankar and Peter Leese claimed the 8-7 win with an 8-6 score in the tiebreak.
Erb went on to win in straight sets at No. 1 singles, while first-year
Sanjheev Rao picked up a 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 7-5 win over Riordan at No. 6. The Eagles (8-2) won singles positions 2-5, with three of those wins coming in straight sets. Only Kistler at No. 2 went to a third set before falling 4-6, 6-3, 3-6 against Brock Ladehoff.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
Erb, ranked No. 8 in Division III and fourth in the region, picked up a ranked win at No. 1 singles, as Charan Shankar was ranked No. 38 in Division III and 11th in the region. Conversely, Erb and Kistler were close to pulling off the upset over the nationally 10th-ranked and regionally third-ranked duo of Charan Shankar and Leese at No. 1 doubles.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will return to action on Wednesday and will split the team up at two ODAC sites. A group of Generals will travel to Bridgewater, while another will head to Ferrum, and both matches will start at 4:00 p.m.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
