The Lawrence University men’s tennis team was back in action this past weekend. After starting the season 2-1, they headed to Eau Claire, Wisconsin for two non-conference games against the University of Dubuque Spartans and the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Blugolds on Saturday, Feb. 24.
The Vikings had a strong showing against the University of Dubuque (2-2). In the doubles competition, senior Bill Shuman-Kline and sophomore Connor Maloney won a close matchup at No. 1 doubles 9-7. The Vikings also got wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles to sweep all the doubles matches. Sophomores Aidan Delgado and Cade Francour won their No. 2 doubles match 8-3 and freshmen Jason Park and Evan Oriel won their No. 3 doubles match by a margin of 8-2.
In the singles competition against the University of Dubuque, Lawrence picked up another five wins. At No. 2 singles, Maloney won 6-3, 6-4 while at No. 3 singles Delgado played to a 7-5, 6-1 victory. Francour was dominate at No. 4 singles winning his match 6-0, 6-0. Park had a strong showing at No. 5 singles winning 6-2, 6-0, and Oriel also played well winning the No. 6 singles match 6-1, 6-1. Shuman-Kline lost a hard-fought No.1 singles match on the tiebreak, 6-2, 3-6, 0-1 (2-10). The Vikings handily defeated the University of Dubuque 8-1.
The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (7-1) proved to be a much more challenging matchup for Lawrence. The Blugolds swept the Vikings 9-0 winning all matches. In doubles, Shuman-Kline and Maloney lost the No. 1 doubles match 4-8, Delgado and Francour lost the No. 2 doubles match 2-8, and Park and Oriel lost the No. 3 doubles match 3-8. In singles competition, Shuman-Kline lost at No. 1 singles 0-6, 0-6. At. No. 2 singles, Maloney lost 2-6, 6-7. The Vikings strongest showing came at No. 3 singles as Delgado narrowly lost his match in the super tiebreaker 7-5, 3-6, 0-1 (8-10). Francour lost at No. 4 singles 2-6, 0-6 and at No. 5 singles Park lost 0-6, 0-6. Finally, at No. 6 singles, Oriel lost 1-6, 6-7.
With the split on the day, Lawrence’s record moves to 3-2 on the season. They are back in action this upcoming Saturday, March 3 as the travel to Wisconsin Lutheran College. Over spring break, the team will travel down to Orlando, Florida for some non-conference matches before the heart of their season, the conference matchups begin in April. The Vikings hope to use these next non-conference matches to hone their skills so they can be playing their best tennis in April.
