UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's tennis team will prepare for a jam-packed week consisting of three matches. The Pioneers will host Mohawk Valley Community College at 4 p.m. on April 20 before playing back-to-back Empire 8 matches at 3:30 p.m. on April 22 at home against Houghton College and at 1 p.m. on April 23 at Alfred University.
Last Time Out: Utica went 1-1 last week with a win over Oswego State before falling on the road to Nazareth College. The Lakers opened the match with a 2-1 advantage after earning wins in doubles one and three. The Pioneers claimed second doubles thanks to an 8-7 win by
Austin McGrain (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford Mendon ) and
Ethan Trembley (Schenectady, NY/La Salle Institute). Utica cruised through the first three singles as
Damian Bruce (Gloversville, NY/Gloversville) (6-4, 6-0),
LJ Nuzzo (Peru, NY/Peru Central) (6-2, 7-6 (7-3)) and McGrain (6-2, 6-4) all earned wins. While Oswego secured wins in fourth and fifth singles,
Bradley Litz (West Winfield, NY/Mt. Markham ) secured the Pioneer victory after winning sixth singles 6-1, 6-3.
Still Rolling: Although
LJ Nuzzo (Peru, NY/Peru Central) picked up his first singles loss of the season, he's still carrying an impressive 6-1 mark to his credit. His six singles wins lead Utica while his four wins in doubles play tied three others for the team lead.
He Never Left: Despite all of Nuzzo's success,
Damian Bruce (Gloversville, NY/Gloversville) has also had a fantastic season thus far. He is second on the team with five singles wins while being one of four Pioneers with four wins in doubles.
About MVCC: The Hawks have competed in one match this season, falling to SUNY Delhi 6-0. This will be the first meeting between Utica and MVCC.
Scouting Houghton: The Highlanders are 7-10 overall and are in first place in the Empire 8 with a 4-0 record. Micha Schilke leads the team with six singles wins while Levi Webb, Nolan Zach and Matthew Cicero each have five. In doubles, Webb/Zach and Jaimie Staerkle/Isaac Little are 3-3 each when paired together. Houghton will come to Utica on a three-match winning streak which includes a win over the Pioneers on April 9.
A Look at Alfred: The Saxons are currently 1-10 overall, 0-4 in the E8 and will take on Nazareth College before hosting Utica on Saturday. Alfred has five different players that lead the team with two singles wins as well as five doubles pairs that have each won once. The Pioneers defeated the Saxons 9-0 in the previous matchup between the teams on April 3.
Up Next: Utica will travel to SUNY Delhi at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 27.
