Match #7
Daemen Wildcats (1-2, 0-0 ECC) vs. Mercyhurst Lakers (1-1, 0-0 PSAC)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 18
Time: 6 PM
Location: Erie, PA | Westwood Racquet Club
BACK ON THE COURT
The Daemen University men's tennis team heads south to Erie, Pennsylvania for a non-conference match up with Mercyhurst on Saturday evening at 6 PM. The Wildcats come into the match with a 1-5 overall record and 1-2 record in the spring, while Mercyhurst is 1-1 on the year.
A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEKEND
After splitting their spring season opening weekend with a big 4-3 win over Division III Rochester Institute of Technology and a 7-0 loss to Division I Niagara University, the Wildcats suffered a 7-2 loss to Division III St. Lawrence last Saturday afternoon. The Saints swept all three doubles matches and won the match after winning the first two singles matches. Seniors
Phillip Vance (Orchard Park, N.Y.) and Zach Laplante (Ottawa, Ont.) picked up singles wins in the match, with Vance winning a three-sett thriller, 6-3, 5-7, 10-5, and Laplante cruised to his second singles victory of the spring season with a 7-5, 6-2 win in No. 5 singles.
2023 OUTLOOK
Head coach
Richard Greco, Jr. returns for his second season. He returns five players from last season and welcomes four freshmen to the team. Seniors
Zachary Laplante (Ottawa, Ont.),
Luis de Vuyst (Antwerp, Belgium) and
Phillip Vance (Orchard Park, N.Y.) top the list of returning players. Laplante and de Vuyst both made an immediate impact on the team last year in their first season with the program. Laplante, who transferred to Daemen from Salem University, posted a team-high six singles wins last year and also lead the team in combined singles and doubles wins with 12. de Vuyst posted five singles wins last year, four of which came at No. 1 singles. Vance returns for his fourth season after posting a career best five singles wins last year. Freshmen
Alex Lumanog (Albuquerque, N.M.) and
Rohan Chitanand (Den Haag, Netherlands) both saw considerable playing time during Daemen's fall season. Lumanog played No. 1 singles in all three dual matches, while Chitanand played in two of the three dual matches and registered his first career win during a 4-3 loss to Allegheny. Fellow newcomer
Adam Pasierb (Lancaster, N.Y.) is also expected to see action this spring.
POLL POSITION
Daemen is tied for third in the 2022-23
East Coast Conference Men's Tennis Preseason Coaches' Poll. After advancing to the second round of the NCAA men's tennis tournament in 2022, Queens picked up all four first-place votes and is selected first in the preseason poll with 16 points. Reigning ECC champion St. Thomas Aquinas, who put together a solid postseason after winning their first ever conference title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament, earned 12 points and was picked second in the poll. Daemen and District of Columbia each earned six points and tied for third.
UP NEXT
The Wildcats travel for their fourth straight road match when they square up with Edinboro on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 4 PM.
SCOUTING THE MERCYHURST LAKERS
A member of the PSAC, Mercyhurst comes into Saturday's match with a 1-1 record in the spring. The Lakers opened up the spring season with a 6-1 win over Salem on Friday, Feb. 10 but fell to Division I St. Bonaventure 6-1 two days later. In the 2021-22 season, Mercyhurst went 10-11 and advanced to the NCAA Atlantic Regional before falling 4-2 to West Liberty in the opening round. Six players return from last season's team, including 6-foot-5 senior Hristo Plasheski who has won both of his spring singles matches and one of two doubles matches with partner freshman Colm Shultz. The Lakers have capitalized in doubles this season, sweeping all three doubles pairings against Salem and taking one of three against the Bonnies, with the No. 2 pairing of sophomore Noha De Sousa and senior Ben Davis as the only doubles to beat St. Bonaventure on Sunday.
SERIES RECORD VS. MERCYHURST
All-Time Record: 8-0 Mercyhurst
Away Record: 6-0 Mercyhurst
Last Meeting: 6-1 Mercyhurst | Feb. 16, 2020 | Erie, PA
Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.
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