Atlanta, Ga. - The N.C. Wesleyan men's tennis team suffered a 5-0 loss to #2 Emory University on Sunday afternoon in the third round of the NCAA Division III Tournament hosted by the Eagles. While the team ends its dual season with an overall record of 19-4, senior Sebastian Sikh has been selected to continue play in the NCAA Division III Singles Championships on May 24th.
The Bishops had previously advanced to Sunday's regional championship by knocking off #19 Sewanee by a 5-3 score in Saturday's second round. Wesleyan took a 2-1 lead in doubles play thanks to 8-1 and 8-6 wins by the duos of Ioannis Brokakis/Roberto Puig and J.D. Telles/Aditya Iyer at the top two seeds, respectively.
In singles action, Sewanee wins at #4 and #6 sandwiched a straight-set victory by Telles at #3, tying the match at 3-3 down the stretch. Fortunately, the Bishops were able to avenge their season-opening loss to the Tigers with straight-set wins by Sikh and Brokakis at the top two seeds to secure the 5-3 final.
Wesleyan then took its 16-match winning streak into Sunday's Sweet 16 match-up with the Eagles (18-4), who raced out to a 3-0 lead with a doubles sweep by 8-3, 8-3, and 8-4 scores. Emory was later able to tally straight-set singles wins at #3 and #6 to clinch the match and halt play. The loss marks the eighth season that the Eagles have eliminated Wesleyan from NCAA play, although the Bishops continue to make strides nationally with ten straight tournament appearances.
With the dual season completed, Sikh will now continue his pursuit of the program's first national title. The individual championships consist of 32 singles players and will be held May 24-26 at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center in Claremont, California with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps serving as host. This marks Sikh's third career selection. The Eskilstuna, Sweden native appeared in the singles tournament last season and previously finished as National Runner-Up in doubles play during his freshman campaign.
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