SEWARD, Neb. – A lead after doubles play did not hold up on a sun-soaked Wednesday (March 16) as the Concordia University Men’s Tennis team hosted Bethel College (Kan.). The visiting Threshers rebounded by winning five singles matches while earning the 5-2 victory in a contest played at the Bulldog Tennis Courts in Seward. Jeremiah Berryman starred for Concordia in triumphing in both doubles and singles.
Head Coach Cam Long’s squad was fresh off a 7-0 win over Sterling College (Kan.) on Tuesday. The Bulldogs own a record of 2-5 overall.
“The thing that jumps out is doubles,” Long said. “We played well enough to win yesterday in doubles and did what we needed to do, but today we played really well. We came out at No. 1 and got a 6-2 win – that was really good. Then at No. 3, that was also a really good match. All season we’ve done well in doubles. That’s where I’m happiest right now.”
The victorious doubles pairs for Concordia on Wednesday were Eduardo Luzzi and Juan Rabellino at No. 1 and Berryman and Bindl at No. 3 (6-2). Those two winning efforts put the Bulldogs in front of the Threshers heading into singles. Bethel did manage to come out on top at No. 2 doubles, 6-2, a spot held down in the Concordia lineup by Jack Kitson and Eduardo Rojas.
Bethel roared back by winning at the Nos. 1 through 5 spots in singles. Of those matches, the most hotly contested was at No. 1, where the Threshers’ Michael Cech held off Isaac Howes in a tiebreaker. Berryman put the second Bulldog team point on the board by taking a pro set, 8-5, over Jordan Singh.
A native of Broken Arrow, Okla., Berryman returned to the program for a fifth season and is taking advantage of an opportunity to be a leader for a team that hopes to compete near the top of the GPAC. Said Berryman, “I really enjoy it here. I really wanted to get my master’s – and luckily they offer it here. I thought that if I have an extra year of eligibility, I might as well play and get my master’s at the same time. I just love being here with the guys. It’s really fun, and I’m glad to be here for one more year.”
Bethel moved to 2-4 overall as part of a busy day. The Threshers were headed to play Doane in Crete at the conclusion of the match in Seward. They compete as a member of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.
Concordia will be on the road on Saturday for a 1 p.m. CT match at Missouri Valley College (5-6), located in Marshall, Mo. In their last time out, the Vikings picked up a 4-2 win over Milligan University (Tenn.) on March 11.