Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The George Mason University men's tennis team fell in a pair of competitive matches to Monmouth and host Navy Saturday afternoon at the United States Naval Academy.
Mason dropped both matches by the score of 4-0, although there were a number of important takeaways to bring back to Fairfax for the Patriots.
"The guys battled hard again today and played competitive with two really tough teams," head coach Jimmy Davis said. "These last five matches are going to help us when we start playing our stretch of conference matches, and the guys have proven they're willing to fight and trust each other as a team. We're looking forward to getting back to work and continuing to improve."
In Saturday's opener against Navy, the Midshipmen won No. 1 and No. 3 doubles, although Mason's No. 2 team of
Pally Ray and
Ryan Charles was locked in a tight battle at No. 2, trailing 6-5 when the point was clinched.
In singles, junior
Edward Ayers paced the Patriots from the No. 1 position. He captured the opening set, 7-6, after a solid 7-5 win in tiebreaker points. He was down 2-1 in the second set when the match was clinched.
In the late match vs. Monmouth, Ayers and doubles partner
Jakob Nielsen battled at No. 1, but ultimately fell to the Hawks' tandem of Pipoli/Giuffrida, 6-4. Charles and Ray led 5-4 at No. 2 when the doubles point was called.
In singles, Ayers was locked in a dogfight at No. 1 with Jakovljevic. He fell in a tight 6-7 set in the first (7-3) and the match was called in the second. At No. 3, Nielsen dropped his opening set, but was leading 6-5 in the second at the time of the overall match's conclusion.
At No. 4 singles, sophomore
Ryan Charles claimed victory in his first set, 6-2, but dropped a competitive frame in the second, 6-4. Charles nearly pulled off the win, but fell in a shortened 10-3 point battle in the third as Cooke-Wheaton of Monmouth took the win.
Mason is back in action Friday (Feb. 15) with a 6 p.m. match at Mary Washington.
#GetPatriotic
