Providence, R.I.--Senior Matthew Gambardella (West Warwick, RI) tied the school record for career points (62.0) with a pair of victories to lead the Rhode Island College men's tennis team to a 7-2 victory against Suffolk in a non-conference contest played at the RIC Tennis Center on Thursday afternoon.
THE BASICS
Rhode Island College 7, Suffolk 2
Rhode Island College (9-3)
Suffolk (3-11)
HOW IT HAPPENED
• RIC took the first point of the match when Gambardella and sophomore Ethan Hoy (West Warwick, RI) posted an, 8-1, win over sophomore David Grujic (Revere, MA) junior Panagiotis Meltsakos (Andover, MA) at No. 3 doubles.
• RIC senior Chandler Scott (Ashaway, RI) and sophomore Mike Shea (Smithfield, RI) gave the Anchormen the 2-0 advantage after an 8-1 win over senior Rami Esrawi (Braintree, MA) and freshman Hasan Esrawi (Braintree, MA) at No. 2 doubles.
• Suffolk picked up its first point of the day at the No. 1 doubles spot where junior Mike DeFelice (Brandford, CT) and senior Chris Parnagian (Cranston, RI) recorded an, 8-3, win over RIC sophomore Alex Bourque (North Smithfield, RI) and senior Alan Esposito (Clinton, CT).
• Shea posted a (6-3, 6-1) win at No. 5 singles against freshman Ben Bricker (Los Angeles, CA) to extend RIC's lead to 3-1.
• Esposito's (6-1, 6-2) win against senior Charles Tang (Hong Kong, China) at the sixth singles spot gave the Anchormen the 4-1 lead.
• Hoy then clinched the match for RIC with a (6-3, 6-2) victory over freshman Davis Altomonte (Pembroke, MA) to make the score, 5-1.
• Gambardella then had a (6-3, 7-5) win against Rami Esrawi for his 62nd career point that put the match at, 6-1.
• Scott recorded a (6-2, 0-6, 6-4) victory against Parnagian to give RIC a 7-1 lead.
• The visiting Rams took their last point of the day at the No. 1 singles spot where DeFelice posted a three-set (5-7, 6-3, 7-6) win over Bourque.
WHAT'S NEXT
In upcoming action, Rhode Island College will close out the regular season with a Little East match at home vs. UMass Boston on Saturday, April 27 (1 p.m.).
