Lauren Boone
Senior Writer
The men’s tennis team travelled to Syracuse, N.Y. this past weekend for the Patriot League Tournament. The third-seeded Bison swept the Lafayette Leopards 4-0 on April 19, securing their seventh consecutive trip to Patriot League semifinals, where they fell 4-3 in a close match against second-seeded Lehigh on April 20.
As during the regular season, the Bison quickly won the doubles point against Lafayette. No. 1 doubles team Aidan Lynch ’14 and Evan Zimmer ’13 won their match 8-2, while Octavio Canibe ’15 and Kelly Morque ’13 ultimately secured the doubles point with a victory at No. 3 doubles 8-4. Nick Bybel ’16 and Josh Katten ’13 also won their doubles match 7-2.
The Bison carried the momentum into the singles play, with Zimmer, Katten and Canibe all defeating their opponent in straight sets to claim the overall victory for the Bison. Bybel, Morque and Kyle Rosen ’14 also secured wins for the Bison, but their victories did not factor into the final score.
Although they were able to defeat Lafayette in the quarterfinals, the Bison fell in a highly competitive match to the second-seeded Lehigh Mountain Hawks. The Bison defeated the Mountain Hawks 4-3 during regular season play, but Lehigh managed to get their revenge.
No. 1 doubles team Lynch and Zimmer lost their match 8-4, while No. 3 doubles team Canibe and Morque pulled out an 8-3 victory. In the final doubles matchup, the No. 2 team of Bybel and Katten fought hard, but dropped the match 9-8 (3), giving Lehigh the doubles point.
In the singles play, the Bison were unable to make up for lost points. Bybel won his No. 1 singles match 6-2, 7-5. Morque fought a three-set match but ultimately came out on top (3-6, 7-5, 6-4) at the No. 2 singles spot. Zimmer easily won his No. 3 singles match, recording a score of 6-2, 6-4. Katten lost his match 6-1, 6-1 at No. 4 singles. Rosen also lost at the No. 5 singles position 7-5, 6-3. Finally, Canibe lost the No. 6 singles position in a close three-set match 2-6, 7-6, 6-4.
The Bison concluded their season on April 24 with a 6-0 win at home against Bloomsburg. None of the Bison lost any match ups, as the Orange and the Blue finished with a 15-8 record. Though the Bison will be losing Katten, Morque, and Zimmer, a young core of talent will hopefully allow the men’s tennis team to improve on their record next year, as well as take a step closer to the ultimate goal of winning the Patriot League Tournament.