WENHAM, Mass. – The Endicott men's tennis team ended Gordon College's nine-match winning streak on Monday evening with a 5-4 victory over the Fighting Scots at the Brigham Tennis Courts.
Endicott started the match with a 1-0 lead at No. 3 doubles courtesy of an 8-6 victory from Sean McAndrews (Vineyard Haven, Mass.) and Nicholas Eherts (New Milford, Conn.), but Gordon evened the score moments later at No. 1 via an identical 8-6 decision of its own.
The match potentially hinged on the result at second doubles and Gordon's No. 2 duo held the lead on serve for the majority of the match. The Gulls ended up forcing a tiebreaker at 8-8 before Eric Pierce (Barrington, R.I.) and Keaton McCleary (Newtown, Conn.) found a way to get by Nate Lookwhy (Westborough, Mass.) and Peter Godwin (Manchester, Conn.) by 9-8 (7-2) score.
In singles, the Gulls brought the match within a point of decision with two straight-set results at fifth and sixth singles. Eherts controlled Godwin at five, while McCleary fought off Joe Daugherty (Norfolk, Va.) in the second set to win 6-0, 6-3.
Gordon responded, however, with three positive results in a row at the No. 2, No. 1, and No. 4 positions to tie the match-score at 4-4.
Pierce and Lookwhy then found themselves deadlocked in a tight match at third singles with the match on the line. In both sets, Pierce jumped out to an early 4-1 advantage only for Lookwhy to battle back despite his slow starts in each set.
Pierce answered both rallies by Lookwhy though as the junior won a few key points at the end of each set to take the match with a 7-5, 6-4 triumph over the Gordon freshman.
TOP QUOTE
"Total team effort today against a terrific opponent. Ultimately it came down to a few points here and there," said Endicott men's tennis head coach Jeremy Howard. "We will rest up and get ready for another huge test against Roger Williams on Wednesday."
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Endicott's win over Gordon creates a log jam for the top seed in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) as the Gulls, Fighting Scots, Roger Williams and Nichols all have 4-1 records in league play this season.
- The Blue and Green have won three matches in a row, and are currently 7-1 on the road.
- Pierce is 5-1 at No. 3 singles.
- McCleary and Pierce extended their winning streak to six straight matches as a doubles pairing.
- Eherts and McAndrews are also on a six-match winning streak in doubles play this season.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicot (9-6, 4-1 CCC) hosts Roger Williams on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. Gordon (13-3, 4-1 CCC) takes on Salve Regina on Wednesday at 4 p.m. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
