Riano Rojas posted wins at No. 2 doubles and No. 5 singles today |
Graells leads four double-winners for Dolphins, rallying for clinching win
EASTON, Mass. (April 17, 2019) – Le Moyne College, ranked No. 6 in the latest Oracle/Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division II East Regional rankings, battled past Stonehill College for a 6-1 victory in Northeast-10 Conference men's tennis action on Charles Watt Tennis Courts this afternoon.
Senior Xavier Graells led four double-winners for Le Moyne, providing the match-clinching point with his 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 battle against Stonehill freshman Vincent Huynh, rallying from 5-3 in the second to close out the match after the first went to a tiebreaker. Graells also combined with classmate Andres Hernandez for a 6-1 win at No. 3 doubles that gave the Dolphins their first doubles win on the way to clinching the doubles point with a 2-1 edge.
Junior Philip Blythe and sophomore Tom Jarry were also double-winners for Le Moyne on the afternoon, starting with a 6-2 win at No. 1 that clinched the doubles point for the Dolphins. Blythe, ranked No. 6 in the Oracle/ITA East Region singles rankings, gave Le Moyne a 2-0 lead with his 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 2 singles against junior Samuel Miller, while Jarry pulled the Dolphins within a point of the match win with his 6-1, 6-4 decision over sophomore Trent Newman at No. 1.
Freshman Juan Camilo Riano Rojas was a double-winner for Stonehill, posting a 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 5 singles against Le Moyne sophomore Christian Erickson that gave the Skyhawks hopes for a comeback, as the remaining singles matches could still have gone either way at the time. Riano Rojas and sophomore Russell White earned the Skyhawks doubles win with a 7-6 (7-1) triumph at No. 2.
Hernandez and postgrad Sven Gopfrich closed out the match after Graells provided the match-winning point, with their victories at No. 3 and No. 6 singles, respectively. Both needed tiebreakers in their matches, with Hernandez edging White, 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 and Gopfrich defeating junior Aaron Diamond, 6-3, 7-6 (8-6).
Stonehill (12-7, 4-4 NE10) returns to the courts next Tuesday, April 23, when it hosts Saint Thomas Aquinas College, ranked ninth in the region, at Watt Courts at 3:30 p.m. Le Moyne (10-8, 5-3 NE10) hosts Roberts Wesleyan College next Wednesday at 3 p.m.
For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks "Front Row" mobile app, powered by PrestoSports, on iTunes and the Android Market.
