WINCHESTER, Va. – The Guilford College men's tennis team (3-6, 2-4ODAC) faced a tough challenge on Saturday afternoon, falling 4-0 to Shenandoah University (5-3, 3-0 ODAC) in a non-conference matchup at the Lowry Tennis Courts. The match was delayed due to rain, pushing the continuation of play until 6 p.m. before ultimately being cut short.
In doubles action, the Quakers started off strong at the top flight, as
Andres Mercedes (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) and
Brandon Hermes (West Hartford, Conn.) secured a 6-4 victory over Dominick Suwak and Keith Orr. However, Shenandoah took the doubles point by claiming wins at No. 2 and No. 3.
Evan Wong (Greensboro, N.C.) and
Henry Austin (Winterville, N.C.) battled at No. 2 but fell 6-3 to A. Chintharlapalli and Shine Tokas. On court three,
Rylan Tuten (Asheville, N.C.) and
Emmanuel Oye (Clayton, N.C.) struggled to find their rhythm, dropping a 6-0 decision to Jovan Cirkovic and Artem Babaiev.
As the match transitioned into singles play, Guilford looked for a spark but faced an uphill battle. At No. 1 singles, Mercedes was forced to retire against Suwak, giving Shenandoah an early advantage. The Hornets continued their momentum, as Tokas controlled play at No. 2, defeating Hermes in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0. At No. 3, Austin also retired from his match against Babaiev, allowing Shenandoah to extend its lead. Meanwhile, Tuten's match at No. 4 remained unfinished due to the rain-shortened contest, with Cirkovic leading 1-0 at the time of suspension.
With the defeat, the Quakers look to regroup very quickly as they continue play. Guilford returns Sunday for its next match as they travel to the University of Lynchburg. Start time is set for 3 PM.
#GoQuakes
