Men’s Tennis Opens CCC Era with 7-2 Win Over Curry

MILTON, Mass. – In a historic day in Suffolk men's tennis history, the Rams recorded their first win in 1,075 days and did so to begin their stint in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) as the blue-and-gold bested Curry 7-2 in league Saturday afternoon at Trent J. Scott '96 Tennis Courts.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 7 | Curry 2
RECORDS: Suffolk (1-1, 1-0 CCC) | Curry (0-6, 0-1 CCC) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Rams dominated doubles play, with wins at all three courts to help themselves to a 3-0 start. 

On court one, the twosome of Hasan Esrawi and Diego Hernandez-Pons jolted Suffolk out front with an 8-4 win over Lorenzo Russo and Nick Bell. A court two 8-5 win for the Rams' pair of Juan Velasquez and Dylan Katz against Tim O'Brien and Kevin Meade followed.  

Up 2-0 and a doubles Suffolk sweep looming, Haik Semerdjian and Ben Bricker's backs were against the wall as the junior and freshman found themselves in a 2-6 hole to David Monteiro and Grant Palmer. The blue-and-gold tandem rallied for six straight points to pick up the 8-6 decision and secure all three doubles points for the Rams. 

In singles play, the Colonels traded two wins for with one Rams victory to make things more interesting.

Curry picked up points in the first and sixth slots, respectively, while Katz downed Bell in the second spot, 6-4, 6-1, to push Suffolk within one of match point, 4-2.  

Hernandez-Pons wrapped up the victory with a 6-3, 6-1 triumph over Kevin Meade on court three.  

Velasquez and Bricker notched wins from the fourth and fifth positions, respectively, for the 7-2 final. Velasquez put together a 6-1, 6-4 decision over O'Brien, while Bricker bested Montiero, 7-5, 6-4. 

RESULTS

DOUBLES
1 —Hasan Esrawi/Diego Hernandez-Pons (Suffolk) defeated Lorenzo Russo/Nick Bell (Curry), 8-4
2 —Juan Velasquez/Dylan Katz (Suffolk) defeated Tim O'Brien/Kevin Meade (Curry), 8-5
3 —Haik Semerdjian/Ben Bricker (Suffolk) defeated David Monteiro/Grant Palmer (Curry), 8-6

SINGLES
1 — Lorenzo Russo (Curry) defeated Hasan Esrawi (Suffolk), 6-0, 6-1
2 — Dylan Katz (Suffolk) defeated Nick Bell (Curry), 6-4, 6-1
3 —Diego Hernandez-Pons (Suffolk) defeated Kevin Meade (Curry), 6-3, 6-1
4 —Juan Velasquez (Suffolk) defeated Tim O'Brien (Curry), 6-1, 6-4
5 — Ben Bricker (Suffolk) defeated David Montiero (Curry), 7-5, 6-4
6 — Grant Palmer (Curry) defeated Milind Kulkarni (Suffolk), 6-0, 6-1

ORDER OF FINISH: Singles (1, 2, 6, 3, 4, 5), Doubles (1, 2, 3) 

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk played its first CCC match in program history. 
• The Rams found their way in the win column for the first time in 1,075 days. 
• The last time Suffolk secured a triumph was a 7-2 decision over Lesley April 16, 2019.
• The blue-and-gold began its conference calendar in the win column for the first time since 2015 when it took down Johnson & Wales, 6-3, to open its Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) gates. 
• The Rams advanced to 6-1 in the all-time series with the Colonels.
• Suffolk moved to 4-1 when playing at Curry.
• The blue-and-gold has won the last two matchups with the Colonels.
• Five members of the blue-and-gold recorded their first collegiate singles victories: Bricker, Hernandez-Pons, Katz, Semerdjian and Velasquez.
• All three of Suffolk's tandems secured wins for the first time in their partnerships.

COMING UP
Suffolk will travel back to the Trent J. Scott '96 Tennis Courts on the campus of Curry College Tuesday, March 29 for its second CCC matchup of the season, however, this time the Rams will face Wentworth in Milton, Massachusetts. First serve is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.