BOX SCORE
When and Where: April 14, 2018 – Hooksett, N.H. (SNHU Tennis Courts at Penmen Stadium)
Score: Southern New Hampshire University 7, Merrimack College 2
Records: SNHU 13-6 (9-0 NE10), Merrimack (13-8, 8-1 NE10)
Senior Miguel Marreiros (Portimao, Portugal) was part of a Southern New Hampshire University men's tennis team landslide in singles play, as his win clinched a 7-2 victory against Merrimack College that gave the Penmen their third consecutive undefeated record in the Northeast-10 title and, with it, their third straight regular-season championship, as well as the No. 1 seed in the upcoming NE10 Championship, which begins Tuesday.
Seniors Tiago Fernandes (Porto, Portugal) and Jeremy Reichentahl (Cheshire, Conn.) evened the score at 1-1 with an 8-1 victory at No. 3 doubles over Tyler Clontz and Paul Weidinger, but Merrimack would take No. 1 to carry a 2-1 lead into singles play.
SNHU quickly tied it again when graduate student Xavier Aubron (Herouville, France) earned an easy victory after Frank Vega was forced to retire at No. 4 singles. Sophomore Bas van Biezen (Sassenheim, Netherlands) followed with a 6-2, 6-2 defeat of Clontz at No. 5 to give the Penmen their first lead of the match, 3-2.
Fernandes then captured his second win of the day with a 6-3, 6-2 triumph over Mikhail Belov at No. 1 to push the Warriors to the brink. Marreiros would clinch the regular-season title for Southern New Hampshire with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Alex Fedorov at No. 3.
Reichentahl rallied for a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 victory against Weidinger at No. 6, with senior Ricardo Marreiros (Portimao, Portugal) capping the match by also coming back for a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 win over Denis Davydov at No. 2.
Notes:
-Southern New Hampshire, which has now won nine-in-a-row, extends its NE10 winning streak, including the postseason, to 32.
-van Biezen, who is 20-2 on the season in singles play, has won 18 of 19, including 14 straight.
-Fernandes has won nine consecutive singles matches.
-Fernandes, Ricardo Marreiros, Miguel Marreiros, and van Biezen all complete NE10 singles play a perfect 9-0.
-The doubles team of Fernandes and Reichentahl has won nine-in-a-row and finishes conference play a perfect 6-0.
-The Penmen are ranked No. 4 in the ITA Division II East Regional Rankings.
Up Next:
The top-seeded Penmen receive a first-round bye in the NE10 Championship and will host a semifinal match Thursday, April 19 (2 p.m.) against Tuesday's winner of fourth-seeded Franklin Pierce University and fifth-seeded Bentley University.
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