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 Ra'ees Ismail, Xavier |
April 5, 2008
MONROEVILLE, Pa. - No. 1 George Washington will face second-seeded Xavier on Sunday at 11:00am in the Championship match of the 2008 Atlantic 10 Men's Tennis Championship held at the Club 4 Life in Monroeville, Pa. The Colonials dispatched of No. 5 St. Bonaventure, 4-1, in the first semifinal of the afternoon, while No. 2 Xavier defeated No. 3 Charlotte, 4-0 for a spot in the final. It marks the seventh time in eight years that the first and second seeds will meet in the championship match.
Charlotte and St. Bonaventure are slated to square off in the third-place match on Sunday at 11:00am, while with No. 4 Duquesne and No. 10 Saint Louis will commence at 8:00am to determine fifth place.
After taking the doubles point, which included 8-6 and 8-3 victories at flight two and three doubles, respectively, George Washington received victories from the No. 1, 3, and 4 singles to earn a trip to the championship match. Senior Sam Salyer and freshman Erik Hannah were double-winners for the Colonials, with Salyer taking his third flight match, 7-6(4), 6-2 and Hannah winning, 6-2, 6-2 from the fourth flight. George Washington returns to the championship match for the first time since 2004, where it fell to Richmond, 4-1.
In the second semifinal match, Xavier sophomore Chris Herrlinger won his second-flight singles match, 6-3, 6-4 and also clinched the doubles point with junior teammate Doug Matthews, 9-7. The Musketeers avenged a 4-3 defeat in the championship in 2007 and will look to add their second Atlantic 10 Championship on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, fourth-seeded Duquesne downed eight-seeded Rhode Island, 4-1. Sophomores Jeremy McClelland and Mark Maciuch each picked up a pair of wins in the Dukes victory, winning 7-5, 6-2 and 6-2, 6-2 respectfully. With the loss, Rhode Island will play Richmond at 8:00am to determine seventh-place.
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In the other morning match, No. 7 Saint Joseph's defeated No. 11 La Salle, 4-0, to tie for a ninth-place finish in the Championship. Taking the other half of the ninth-place finish was Dayton, who defeated No. 12 Fordham, 4-1. With the losses, Fordham and La Salle share a tie for 11th-place.
In the late match, tenth-seeded Saint Louis upended sixth-seeded Richmond, 4-0. Thanks to sophomore P.J. Hendrie's No.2 singles victory, 6-4, 6-3 as well as an 8-6 doubles victory paired with junior Sean McManus, the Billkens will be seeking their highest finish since joining the Atlantic 10 in 2005-06.
For complete coverage of the Championship, log on to www.atlantic10.org
