SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. -- Needing league wins to stay in contention for the final PSAC Tournament berth, Kutztown men's tennis took care of business at Shepherd, Friday, winning 6-1.
The final score may look lopsided, but many matches were anything but that. KU's depth proved too much for the Rams in doubles, as
Sebastian Arizpe (Puebla, Mexico/Colegio Humboldt de Puebla) and
Justin Gincauskas (Mississauga, Ontario/Cawthra Park Secondary) earned a 6-2 win at No. 2 and
Lucas Cherniak (Buenos Aires, Argentina/Escuela Superior de Comercio Carlos Pellegrini) and
Jacob Bosler (Elkton, Md./Elkton) claimed a 6-1 win at No. 3 to give the Bears the lead going into singles.
The top three singles flights all went to three sets. Shepherd (3-10, 0-5 PSAC) briefly tied the match on the strength of a 6-0, 0-6, 6-0 victory from Yuto Shimotsuji over
Joaquin Perez (Pachuca, Mexico/Escuela Americana) at No. 2, but Kutztown (7-7, 2-3 PSAC) captured the remaining five flights to get back in the win column.
Emmitt Robinson (Ingersoll, Ontario/Ingersoll District Collegiate Institute) downed Fabian Telschow 6-1, 6-1 at No. 4, before
Gonzalo Barcelo (San Pedro, Argentina/Nuestra Senora del Socorro) completed a comeback victory over Sebastian Sevilla at No. 1, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
Another three-set thriller went to the Maroon and Gold at No. 3, with
Neal Devkaran (Fairfax, Va./Paul VI Catholic) holding off Nicholas Espinoza 7-5, 2-6, 6-4. Gincauskas won 6-0, 6-0 over Jaden Sheely at No. 6 and Arizpe beat Hamilton Hall 6-1, 6-2 at No. 5 to account for KU's final points.
Friday's win kept Kutztown in possession of the fourth and final playoff spot for the time being, though Bloomsburg has a match in hand and a head-to-head win over the Golden Bears. Kutztown will host Millersville this coming Tuesday, April 12, at 2 p.m. in a big match for both squads. The Marauders currently sit in a three-way tie for first at 3-0.
Â
