LEXINGTON, Va. – The 25th-ranked Washington and Lee men's tennis team completed the 2023-24 regular season on a high note on Friday afternoon, downing Hampden-Sydney by an 8-1 score on the home courts.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
First-year
Britton Buckingham and sophomore
Rider Yeaman claimed the first team point of the match when, leading 6-3, one of the Hampden-Sydney (6-12, 4-4 ODAC) players suffered an injury, forcing the duo to retire. W&L (14-7, 9-0 ODAC) juniors
Evan Erb and
Eli Hirshberg won by an 8-5 final at No. 1, while the Tigers got their only team point of the match from Thomas Davis and Taylor Fox at No. 2 (8-6).
Five of the six singles matches were completed in straight sets, with Erb posting a 6-0, 6-0 shutout over Dillon Reynolds at No. 1. First-year
Sanjheev Rao (6-2, 6-0) dropped only two games total at No. 3, while Hirshberg (6-1, 6-2) and senior
Connor Coleman (6-2, 6-1) surrendered three games each at No. 2 and No. 6, respectively. First-year
Heys Parker cruised in the first set, 6-1, at No. 5 and went on to finish off the win in the 10th game of the second set.
Junior
James Kurani rounded out the winners for the Blue and White with a three-set victory at No. 4. He won the first set, 6-3, over Davis, who returned in the second with a 6-3 win of his own. Kurani then won the 10-point breaker in the third set, 10-5.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
The Generals turned in their eighth straight undefeated season in ODAC play to, once again, claim the top overall seed for the upcoming ODAC Tournament. They will host a quarterfinal match next week, while the semifinal and championship rounds will all be played at Virginia Wesleyan University.
W&L players finished the 2023-24 season a combined 47-7 in singles play against ODAC opposition, with a 23-4 mark in doubles matches.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will host an ODAC Quarterfinal match on Tuesday against the No. 8 seed at a time to be determined. Official ODAC seedings and matchups for the four quarterfinals will be announced by the league office in the coming days.
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.
