March 21, 2012

MERION STATION, Pa. - The Saint Joseph's men's tennis team earned a tough 4-3 victory over local rival Villanova on Wednesday afternoon at the SJU Tennis Complex on the Maguire Campus. The Hawks dropped the doubles point, but battled back to take four of the six singles tilts to secure the victory.

Junior Tommy Gates and sophomore Dan Barrus teamed up for a victory at second doubles, but a pair of 8-4 defeats gave Villanova the doubles point.

Junior Alex Veronis took his top-flight match, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, over VU's Thomas O'Brien, to get things started for SJU.

The Hawks secured the win with victories by Gates, Barrus, and freshman Max Montague in the third through fifth flights, respectively. Gates and Barrus both fought off their Wildcat opposition in three sets, while Montage clinched his victory in straight sets.

The Hawks will now hit the road for the weekend, taking on Fordham on Saturday in the Bronx and NJIT on Sunday in Newark, N.J.

Saint Joseph's 4, Villanova 3

Doubles
1. Kelly Donaldson / Thomas O'Brien (VU) def. Jeff Kessler / Max Montague (SJU), 8-4
2. Dan Barrus / Tommy Gates (SJU) def. Tim Abbracciamento / Matt Colonnese (VU), 8-7 (3)
3. Ryan Peyton / Michael Rosengren (VU) def. Peter Cognetti / Alex Veronis (SJU), 8-4

Singles
1. Veronis (SJU) def. O'Brien (VU), 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
2. Colonnese (VU) def. Kessler (SJU), 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (2)
3. Gates (SJU) def. Peyton (VU), 7-6 (6), 5-7, 6-3
4. Barrus (SJU) def. Rosengren (VU), 3-6, 6-1, 6-3
5. Montague (SJU) def. Abbracciamento (VU), 6-4, 6-4
6. Mark Miller (VU) def. Pierre Brondeau (SJU), 7-6 (8), 6-4

Game Scores
Singles: Saint Joseph's 84, Villanova 74
Doubles: Villanova 23, Saint Joseph's 16
Total: Saint Joseph's 100, Villanova 97