St. Louis, MO
Today marked the beginning of the SLIAC Tournament for the Principia Panther Men's Tennis Team as they took on the Westminster College Blue Jays in the semi-finals. The Panthers defeated the Blue Jays 9-0 earlier this season and looked to defeat them again to gain a sport in the SLIAC finals. Principia was able to play just well enough to book their spot in the championship, coming away with the victory, in a 5-1 decision.
At 1st doubles,
Joey Sander and
Brody Swan fell behind an early break of serve, but were able to respond by getting a break of their own. The match was tight throughout as both teams played well. Sander and Swan were down 7-6 and were able to save two match points to stay in the match. The match eventually went to a tiebreaker where Principia got off to a slow start, falling behind 5-1 and then 6-4. They were able to save another two match points, but they just did not have enough to come away with the match, falling 9-8 (6). At 2nd doubles, Julian Kitchingman and
Aaron Switzer played some excellent tennis all match long. After being tied at 1-1, Kitchingman and Switzer took control of the match, winning seven straight games on their way to the 8-1 win. At 3rd doubles,
Nat Kenworthy and played sound tennis throughout. They used their steady groundstrokes and consistent serves to put them in position to win. They came away with the 8-2 victory.
At 1st singles, the dependable
Joey Sander started Principia off right with a solid victory. Sander masterfully demonstrated passing shots and lobs as he kept his opponent off guard. Sander won 6-1, 6-0. At 2nd singles, Julian Kitchingman played some extremely consistent tennis against a very tough opponent. Kitchingman dropped the first set, but was playing even steadier in the second set when his match was stopped due to Principia taking the team match. Kitchingman was down 5-7, 1-0. At 3rd singles,
Nat Kenworthy struggled a bit to find his rhythm in the first set, but was gaining traction in the match in the second set. Kenworthy was behind as his match was stopped 2-6, 3-3.
At 5th singles,
Aaron Switzer started the match off great, hitting consistent groundstrokes and finishing points at the net. However, his opponent started to play better and Switzer's play dropped. Switzer lost the first set, but rebounded very well in the second set. When his match was stopped, Switzer was behind 5-7, 3-0. At 6th singles,
Dan Wagstaff was his usual steady presence. Wagstaff hit the ball well enough to put his opponent on the defensive throughout. Wagstaff came away with the easy 6-1, 6-2 win. At 4th singles,
Brody Swan clinched the match for the Panthers. After cruising to a first set victory, Swan had trouble closing out his opponent. After squandering 5 match points, Swan finally put his opponent away, finishing with the 6-2, 7-6 (4) win.
The Panthers advanced to the SLIAC Championship tomorrow to play the Greenville Panthers. Principia played Greenville earlier this year, losing 5-4 in a very competitive match. The match will be played at 11:00 AM at Dwight Davis Tennis Center tomorrow morning. Come out and support the Principia Men's Tennis Team as they try to win the SLIAC Championship for the third consecutive year!
