The Highlanders' Men's Tennis Team jumped off to a strong start in their Fall competition with a 7-2 victory over SUNY Oswego on Thursday evening. Houghton's doubles play allowed them to gain an early 3-0 lead against the Oswego Lakers. Ethan Baker and Matthew Cicero secured the first victory with an 8-2 win at second doubles, followed next by third doubles at 8-4 and first doubles at 8-6.
Dylan Scherer scored Houghton's fourth point with a commanding 6-0, 6-0 win at second singles. Sophomore Micah Christensen clinched the victory for the Highlanders with an impressive 6-0, 6-1 victory at No. 5 singles. Houghton's Jake Fisler and Matt Cicero tacked on the remaining two Highlander points.
"All-in-all the guys played some dominating matches today." Says Head Coach Tonya McGraner "Doubles was a tad shaky at times, but they got it done. And you have to admire that considering every single pairing is different from last year. In singles we only dropped a handful of games in the matches we won, and in the ones we lost we went to a tie-break. So you can't ask for much more than that. There are a couple of guys already seeing the benefit of their hard work and dedication, so that's really great as well."
The Houghton Men will return to play next weekend when they face Ohio Northern at the Allegheny College Invitational. Play begins at 8:30am Saturday morning.