COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Mason Groff and Connor DeFaber-Schumacher each reached 50 career wins during a non-conference sweep of Arcadia for the Ursinus College men's tennis team on Saturday.
The victory put a bow on a busy day for the Bears (2-1), who pulled double duty in taking on Centennial Conference counterpart Swarthmore on the Main Line in the morning. Ursinus dropped a matching 9-0 decision to the 32nd-ranked Garnet in its league opener.
Groff and DeFaber-Schumacher became the 15th and 16th players in program history to produce 50 career victories. DeFaber-Schumacher was first to the mark with a 6-0, 6-0 double bagel at No. 3 singles and was followed in short order by Groff, who attained the milestone with a 6-3, 6-1 victory at No. 1 singles.
Groff teamed for an 8-1 rout at No. 1 doubles with Matt Fontanese, who himself sits just three wins away from 50. Kyle Bookman and Noah Mandel achieved the same result at third doubles, while DeFaber-Schumacher and Simbarashe Kanjanda notched an 8-4 win on the No. 2 court.
Mandel matched DeFaber-Schumacher with a 6-0, 6-0 shutout at No. 6 singles. Bookman and Kanjanda each won 6-2, 6-1 at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively, and Fontanese was a 6-2, 6-4 winner at No. 2.
The Bears gave the nationally ranked Garnet a battle on a few courts, notably with Groff and Fontanese pushing the hosts' top doubles pairing to an 8-5 score. Fontanese played a tight second set during a 6-1, 6-4 setback at No. 2 singles, and Kanjanda conceded an 8-4 decision at No. 5.
Men's tennis is off until its annual spring break trip, which begins March 9 against St. Ambrose.