After posting a 13-8 overall record and a 4-3 mark in dual matches against conference opponents this season, the George Mason men's tennis team has been seeded fifth overall in the upcoming Atlantic 10 Tennis Championship Tournament in Charlottesville, Va. The Patriots will take on the fourth-seeded Richmond Spiders on Friday, April 18 at 10:00 AM.
The two teams last met just over a week ago as the Patriots lost a close match to the Spiders last Thursday April 10th, 4-3 in Fairfax. James Lange, Tanner Baine, and Taylor Sargent each won their respective singles matches, while the senior doubles team of Chris Borden and Jimmy Davis were the only Patriots doubles team to win.
For the third straight year, the Atlantic 10 Championship Tournament will be held at the Boar's Head Sports Club in Charlottesville. Last year, VCU won the tournament in their first season in the A-10. George Washington drew the top seed and seeks its third A-10 Championship in four years.
The winner of the Mason/Richmond match will face the winner of #1 George Washington/#8 Dayton or #9 Saint Louis on Saturday morning.
In their inaugural Atlantic 10 season, the Patriots finished 4-3 in conference matches, defeating St. Bonaventure 7-0, Fordham 4-0, St. Joseph's 4-3 and La Salle 7-0.
The Patriots were led by senior Jimmy Davis (Manassas, Va/Stonewall Jackson HS), who is capping off his three-year career with Mason after transferring from Longwood following his freshman season. He has won more than 50 singles matches as a Patriot, including 16 wins this season.
Joe Hill (Missouri City, TX/John Foster Dulles HS) is completing his first season at George Mason after transferring from LSU. The junior played in the top three singles positions and finished with a 15-8 record overall while going 6-2 playing at the three spot.
Sophomore Aaron Capitel (Atlanta, Ga/North Springs Charter) played most of his singles from the middle spots, and finished with a 18-8 overall record, including a 10-7 mark at #4. In two seasons, the Patriot netter has compiled a 39-15 singles record. He was 21-7 in his first year as a collegian.
James Lange (Peach Tree City, Ga/Starrs Mill HS) has been a solid contributor as a freshman for the Patriots. He recorded a 15-10 record playing the top three singles positions.
Seniors Chris Borden and Taylor Sargent (Littleton, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) have made an impact in the doubles action. Borden has teamed with fellow senior Davis to record an 11-5 overall record with a 10-5 ledger at #3. Meanwhile, Sargent has played 14 matches with Tanner Baine at #2 and finished the regular season at 8-9 overall.
The doubles tandem of first-year Patriots Hill and Lange has been the most frequent team at #1, finishing 10-8 from the top doubles position.
The A-10 Men's Tennis Championship features a four-day, single-elimination format. The winner of the Championship will receive the Conference's automatic bid to compete in the NCAA Tournament. For more information on the Championship, including match results, recaps and photos, please visit the league's online home atlantic10.com.
