COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Ursinus College men's tennis team is making a habit of achieving big milestones against Cabrini.
Last season, senior Tyler Arsenault recorded his 100th career victory as part of a 9-0 sweep of the Cavaliers. One year later head coach Pete Smith did the honors, earning his 100th win at the helm of the men's tennis program.
Smith, in his 10th season in charge of the Ursinus men, reached the century mark in his 186th match, which also resulted in a 9-0 Bears triumph. Playing indoors for the second time in as many contests, Ursinus (6-1) expanded its winning streak to three in its final tune-up before Saturday's Centennial Conference opener at Franklin & Marshall.
The Bears, who lost just seven games total across the nine courts in last season's match-up, were nearly as dominant this time. Ursinus dropped only two games in doubles play and nine in singles matches.
Junior Max Oberholtzer and sophomore Paul Vecchio polished off an 8-0 defeat of Alijah Broadnax and Sean Jaeger at number one doubles, stretching their winning streak to six and improving to 6-1 in dual matches this season. Senior Henry Burke and freshman Connor DeFaber-Schumacher produced an 8-1 victory over Matthew DiMaria and Charles LaMantia at number two, and senior Jordan Hodess and freshman Devin Paulison matched that score against Nick Tilley and Nick Scaramuzza in the third flight.
Oberholtzer was a 6-0, 6-2 winner over Broadnax at first singles, and Vecchio topped Jaeger by a 6-1, 6-1 final at number two. Burke dispatched LaMantia 6-1, 6-0 on the third court, with Hodess overpowering DiMaria 8-2 at number four. DeFaber-Schumacher completed an 8-0 blanking of Tilley, and Lachowicz capped the sweep with an 8-2 triumph over Scaramuzza.
The Bears serve up conference play with a clash of regionally ranked rivals in Lancaster on Saturday. Ursinus is No. 19 in the ITA's Atlantic South rankings, while Franklin & Marshall checks in at No. 12.
Coach's Corner
"100 career wins is great because it brings another nice piece of recognition to the men's tennis program," Smith said. "This group of guys has been a pleasure to coach, and they are having a great year so far. On a personal level, I think this accomplishment certainly makes at least one thing clear: I have been coaching here for quite a while. Beyond that, it is just another win for the guys. It's a nice milestone, but we are not done yet. We have a lot more to achieve this year."
