Elon Men’s Tennis Cruises Past App State and North Carolina A&T in Doubleheader

ELON, N.C. – On a long day where weather forced match times to be delayed, Elon University men’s tennis earned a clean sweep of Appalachian State and North Carolina A&T in its home-opening doubleheader on Friday, Jan. 18, at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center.

APP STATE BOX (PDF) | NC A&T BOX (PDF)

“Today was a long day for us, but we got a chance to play a lot of tennis,” said head coach Michael Leonard. “I’m proud of the toughness our players showed today and how they competed to earn two solid wins. We’ll take this experience and continue to get better as the season progresses.”

HIGHLIGHTS
After a delayed start to the opening match against App State, the Phoenix took the early 1-0 lead as it claimed the doubles point. The Mountaineers gained an early advantage in the point with a 6-1 victory on court three, but the Phoenix would win on courts one and two to clinch doubles action. After Taylor Foote and Mario Paccini earned a 6-3 win at No. 1, Camilo Ponce and Kyle Frankel secured the point with a 6-1 victory at No. 2 doubles.

In shortened singles action, the Phoenix would win the required three matches after its victory in doubles to clinch the match. After Paccini and Felipe Osses-Konig claimed victories on courts one and two, Jacob Bicknell clinched the win with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Bence Tamas at No. 6 to give the Phoenix a 4-0 lead.

In Elon’s second match of the day, the Phoenix and the Aggies only played singles due to the delayed start. North Carolina A&T had an injury that forced a forfeit on court six, giving Elon the 1-0 lead at the start. After winning the first set 6-0, Foote clinched the win as Nolan Martino had to retire due to an injury and Elon took a 2-0 lead. After the Phoenix took a 3-0 lead, Dino Bonetta clinched the win at the No. 4 position with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Hayden Faulkenbury. Paccini, Frankel and Ponce were the others to earn victories to help Elon clinch the 6-0 victory.

UP NEXT
The Phoenix hits the road on Tuesday, Jan. 29, facing the Clemson Tigers, its second ACC opponent of the season. The matchup is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.