Mount St. Mary's (0-1) vs. Shepherd (0-0)
Tuesday September 20, 3:00 p.m.
Mount Tennis Courts * Emmitsburg, Md.
Mount Update: The men's team comes into Tuesday's contest against the Rams, after losing 8-1 to UDC last week. Freshman Patrick McGinley provided the lone win for the Mount at No. 6 singles. Junior Mike Salomon and sophomore Justin Olexa competed in the Bucknell Invitational over the weekend. Salomon won Flight A singles back draw, while Olexa won the Flight B singles back draw, consolation bracket.
About Shepherd: This will be the first match of the year for the Rams, who finished 12-9 last season.
Last Meeting: Last year the Mount beat Shepherd 7-2 in Shepherdstown, WV. The Mount won two of the three doubles points to take an early lead. Mike Salomon and Taylor Place defeated Chris Pratt and Taylor Boyle, 8-4 at No. 1 doubles. Salomon won at No. 2 singles in three sets, 5-7, 6-1, 10-3. Mike Zabetakis won at No. 3 singles 6-0, 6-0 over Boyle. Taylor Place, Patrick Plastow, and Andrew Marinucci at won in straight sets, 6-0, 6-1 at No. 4, No. 5, and No. 6 singles respectively.
The All-Time Series: This will be the 14th all-time meeting between the Mount and Shepherd with the Mount holding a slim 7-6 lead against the Rams. The Mount has won the past two meetings by a combined score of 14-2. The Mount won the very first match back in 1989, 8-1.
About Last Year: Sophomores Mike Salomon and Matthew Blake each had double digit singles victories, to lead the team. Freshman Mike Zabetakis also joined the double digit club with 12 wins. On the doubles side, Zabetakis and Salomon teamed up to win eight doubles matches, the most out of those returning.
Senior Leadership: The team will have two seniors at the helm this year in Jastin Mostowtt (San Diego, Calif./Cathedral Catholic), and Riley Gates (Ellicott City, Md./Mount St. Joseph). Mostowtt has six singles wins in his career, and has four doubles wins in his three seasons at the Mount.
Three's Company: The team has a strong junior class with three members who have been a force in the Northeast Conference. Matthew Blake (Garnet Valley, Pa./Salesianum (Del.), Mike Salomon (Haymarket, Va./Seton School), and Taylor Place (Snellville, Ga./St. Pius X) make up the trio. Both Blake and Salomon have posted double digit singles wins with Blake having 28 for his career, and Salomon posting 31 in his two years thus far. Place had 14 singles wins his freshman campaign, and posted eight a year ago. Place has 27 career doubles win, the most of any player on the squad.
Up Next: The men return to action Friday, September 23 when they participate in the George Mason Invitational.
