MERCER COUNTY, NJ (09/21/03) -- While most of the Hawk men's tennis team was competing at the Farnsworth/Princeton Invitational, seniors Gary Wnek and Mike Goldschmidt and junior Francisco Velazquez traveled to Mercer County, N.J. for the ECAC Men's Tenns Open South. The event is a compiliation of the top teams in the region not selected for the prestigious ECAC Championships in early October. For the first time in program history, SJU will be one of the top 16 teams invited to the event on the weekend of October 4-5.

Velazquez received a bye in the first round of the Flight A singles and faced off with Erez Cohen of Manhattan. Cohen was leading 6-2 before Velazquez was forced to retire in the second set.

In Flight B action, Wnek earned a 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 win over Cabrini's Jack Keller in the first round. However, Bucknell's Asher Salam was too much to handle in the quarterfinals as the Hawk senior suffered a 6-1, 6-3 loss.

Goldschmidt fell to Saint Peter's Andrew Maple, 6-2, 6-3, in the Flight C first round.