Gameday: Pirates Return To Action At Navy

Match 3: ECU (2-0) at Navy (3-1)
Date	Saturday, Jan. 26
Time	9 a.m. (EST)
Location	Annapolis, Md. (Tose Family Tennis Center)
Social Media	Twitter: @ecutennisM Instagram: @ecumenstennis Facebook: ECU Men's Tennis

Match 4: Mount St. Mary's (0-1) vs. ECU (2-0)
Date	Saturday, Jan. 26
Time	5 pm (EST)
Location	Annapolis, Md. (Tose Family Tenis Center)
Social Media	Twitter: @ecutennisM Instagram: @ecumenstennis Facebook: ECU Men's Tennis

GREENVILLE, N. C. – Coming off a perfect 2-0 home weekend to start the season, the ECU men's tennis team hits the road for the first time, traveling to Annapolis, Md., to take on Navy and Mount St. Mary's.

"I know the guys are looking forward to getting on the road," said head coach Shawn Heinchon. "I feel that you always learn more about yourself and team when you go on the road. The last couple years, we have had some great matches with Navy and this Saturday should be no different."

The Pirates opened their season with a nail-biting 4-3 win over James Madison. ECU led early thanks to doubles wins by the pairings of Austin Allen and Diogo Marques and Javier Renones and Simon Labbe as well as a singles win for Wisse Jonker. However, three straight singles victories for the Dukes had ECU on the brink of a loss. Renones righted the ship with a win on court five and ensured the match came down to court six. There, in his first collegiate dual match, Labbe recovered dropping the opening set as well as a 2-0 deficit in the third set to win and clinch the match for ECU.

The next day against the Citadel, ECU made sure there was no need for any late dramatics, as the Pirates clinched the doubles point and then did not drop a set on any of the six singles courts. It was the fourth straight year that ECU has started the season 2-0.

Jonker was the only Pirate to win a pair of singles matches, although Labbe, Renones, Allen and Bissett all went 1-0. Marques joined Labbe in winning his first collegiate dual match and is now a team-best 11-6 this season. Vlad Anghel continued to occupy court one for ECU, after playing 19 matches there last season, and started the season 1-1.

Navy is 3-1 so far this season, falling 7-0 to Penn before beating St. Bonaventure (7-0), Drexel (5-2), and Duquesne (4-3). For the Midshipmen, Derrick Thompson leads the team with an 11-4 record, while Jack Dabek (10-7) and Jonathan Dollahite (10-3) both have 10 wins. Dollahite was one of four Navy players who has won a pair of dual matches, joining Jake Fishkin, Matthew Lee and Jack McBride. In doubles, FIshkin and McBride are a perfect 5-0, including 2-0 in court one doubles play. The two teams will be meeting for the third straight year, with ECU winning 6-1 each of the past two seasons. The last Navy win in the series was during the 2015 season.

Mount St. Mary's is 0-1 this season and will play Navy prior to taking on the Pirates. The Mountaineers started their season with a 7-0 loss to Delaware on the road. Jackson Wood has the best singles record for Mount St. Mary's, having gone 6-3 during the fall, but he did not play against Delaware. In doubles, Wood has teamed with Parth Sharma to go 8-3 in doubles so far. Jean Armstrong and Evan Hine were the lone bright spot in the loss to Delaware, combining for a doubles win on court three.

First serve for the match between Navy and ECU is slated for 9 a.m., on Saturday, Jan. 26 in Annapolis. The Pirates will have a midday break before returning to the courts for a 5 p.m., match against the Mountaineers.

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Players Mentioned

Austin Allen

Vlad Anghel

Wisse Jonker

Simon Labbe

Diogo Marques

Javier Renones

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