ORLANDO, Fla. - Bears tennis kicked off their spring break trip last night against Mary Hardin-Baylor under the lights at the USTA National Campus. The Crusaders took the evening in a 5-2 result.
Coast Guard started slow, falling after losses at all three doubles matches. The freshman duo of Anthony Gregoire (_) and Konnor Eslinger (_) battled at the no. 2 match but ultimately fell, 6-4, to Fernando Andrade (_) and Marcus Torres (_) in the closest duos set.
The Bears had a better showing in the singles matches. Ben Bonetto (_) was a 2-0 (6-3 6-2_ winner at the no. 1 match, bringing his record to 4-2 on the season at the top position. In the match of the day, Eslinger scored the first win of his collegiate career at no. 4 after a marathon 2-1 (1-6, 6-1, 7-5) victory over big-serving Nic Cusano (_). The Bears also saw competitive losses in the no. 2, 3, and 5 matches.
The Bears return to action against Oglethorpe tomorrow, Match 10th, in a 6:30 pm start at Fort Gatlin Tennis Center.