Swat Avoids Bullets, Win Third Straight Conference Tilt
GETTYSBURG, Pa. -- Swarthmore men's tennis continued to roll past Centennial Conference competition in the early stages of the spring season, picking up a 8-1 victory at Gettysburg on Saturday afternoon. The Garnet improve to 3-0 in the Centennial (5-5 overall) while the Bullets dip to 0-2 in the Conference and 5-4 overall.
Swarthmore, currently ranked 12th in the Atlantic South region according to the latest Campbell’s/ITA rankings, got wins in singles and doubles competition from senior Kevin Shaughnessy (South Kingstown, R.I. / South Kingstown), Zak Kelm ’12 (Shaker Heights, Ohio / University School), and Mark Wee ’11 (Syosset, N.Y. / Syosset).
Shaughnessy paired with Kelm at No. 1 doubles to defeat Dale Beshore and Mike Leary from Gettysburg by a score of 8-3 and then won his fourth straight singles match by besting Leary at No. 2 (7-5, 6-4). Kelm also saw his win-streak extended (five consecutive matches) with an easy 6-3, 6-1 win at the No. 3 spot.
Wee paired up with freshman Stephen Youngblood (Norcross, Ga.) to win at No. 2 doubles, 8-2, over Terry Keegan and Sebastian Rodriguez. Wee (above) battled through a marathon match at No. 4 singles, winning 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 10-8 over Mike McLaughlin.
Swarthmore is playing twice in one weekend for the third consecutive week, again traveling south to face ranked competition. The Garnet will square off with 13th-ranked Johns Hopkins on Sunday, April 5 at 12:00 p.m. in Baltimore, Md.