Box Score

DUDLEY, Mass. – The Nichols College men's tennis team defeated Endicott 6-3 in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action Tuesday afternoon at the Robinson Tennis Courts.
 
The Bison led 2-1 after doubles and took the first three singles matches to claim the match before the Gulls won two of the final three singles matches.
 
Senior captain James Smith (Monte Sereno, Calif.) and freshman Guilherme Barbosa (Bradenton, Fla.) won at No. 2 doubles over senior Sean McAndrews (Vineyard Haven, Mass.) and freshman Jack DeRizzo (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), 8-4.
 
The Gulls evened the score with a win at No. 3 doubles. Junior Nicholas Eherts (New Milford, Conn.) and sophomore Keaton McCleary (Charlotte, N.C.) took down senior Jake Zapatka (Wethersfield, Conn.) and sophomore Aidan Stuart (Orange, Conn.), 8-6.
 
The Bison bounced right back with a win in the top flight as freshman Blake Norton (Stratford, Conn.) and freshman Brandon Howard (Hamden, Conn.) defeated junior Chris Kirkpatrick (Newburyport, Mass.) and freshman Justin Toler (Concord, Mass.), 8-6.
 
Norton got things going in singles as well – winning 6-2, 6-2 over Kirkpatrick at No. 1 singles before Smith earned the win at No. 4 singles over Eherts 6-3, 6-0.
 
Zapatka sealed the match for the Bison with a 6-1, 6-0 win at No. 5 singles over McAndrews.
 
Howard battled to win at No. 2 singles in a tiebreaker for the second set to defeat Toler 6-2, 7-6 (7-5).
 
The Gulls claimed the final two matches of the day with freshman Thomas Brent (Gorham, Maine) defeating freshman Jack Donaldson (Easton, Md.) 7-5, 6-3 before freshman Charles Brook (Devon, Pa.) went three sets with Barbosa to win 6-2, 7-5, 10-6.
 
Quotes
"Not our most complete match, but a win over a very good team. Our top two doubles pairs played well. On the singles side – Blake, Smitty, and Jake were all dominant. Brandon Howard deserves a ton of credit for closing out a tough second set. Now we have a couple days to breathe before a huge week ahead." – Nichols head coach Paul Brower
 
All-Time Series
This is the 12th-consecutive win for the Bison over the Gulls and they now lead the all-time series at, 18-4. Endicott won four-straight matches from 2006-2009.
 
Next Games
Endicott (7-6, 2-2 CCC) – Thursday, April 13 vs UMass Boston, 3:30 p.m.
Nichols (13-2, 5-0 CCC) – Wednesday, April 19 at Roger Williams, 4:00 p.m.