Directions to Clark (MA) University

DUDLEY, Mass. – The Nichols College men's tennis team has earned the No. 1 seed in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Tournament and will play No. 4 Eastern Nazarene College Tuesday afternoon, April 29 at 3:00 p.m. at Clark (MA) University in Worcester, Massachusetts.

The Bison completed the 2013-14 regular season with a record of 19-1 (8-0 CCC) and return to the playoffs following a season which saw them advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season.

Nichols is led by senior Justin DeLuca (Mashpee, Mass.) and freshman Joan Castillo (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic), who were tabbed as the conference's Player and Freshman of the Year, respectively. Head coach Paul Brower was tabbed CCC Coach of the Year while four other student-athletes received all-conference nods.

DeLuca was also named to the CCC First Team in both singles and doubles, along with junior teammate Brandon Roode (Griswold, Conn.). He produced an impressive 15-1 singles record at No. 1 singles and a perfect 15-0 No. 1 doubles record with Roode. His only loss on the season came against the University of Connecticut on March 16 in Puerto Rico. Earlier this season, DeLuca established program records for
singles (65) and doubles (62) wins, and he owns an unblemished career record in conference play (21-0 singles, 27-0 doubles).

Castillo had a stellar start to his collegiate career, compiling a 16-3 overall singles record and a 10-4 doubles record. The rookie recorded a 1-1 record at No. 2 singles, a 12-2 record at No. 3 singles, and a 1-0 record at No. 4 singles. Castillo and sophomore Carlos De La Cruz (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic). posted an overall doubles record of 9-2 (5-1 CCC).

Roode – who tied the single-season mark for singles wins (21) set by DeLuca in 2010 – is 3-0 at No. 1 singles and 15-0 at No. 2 singles. De La Cruz, meanwhile, is 17-3 in singles play (6-0 CCC).

Last month, the Bison defeated the Lions 8-1 in Quincy. They are led by juniors Sam McKay-Corkum (Rehobeth, Mass.) and Tyler Perron (Plympton, Mass.). The team of McKay-Corkum and Perron received Second Team All-CCC honors for their doubles-play this season while McKay-Corkum was a CCC First Team – Singles pick.

The winner will play the winner of No. 3 Endicott /No. 2 Roger Williams University contest in the CCC Championship on Saturday, May 3 at 1:00 p.m. at the higher seed.