MOUNT ST. MARY'S (1-0) vs. LA SALLE (4-0)
Saturday, Oct. 5, 11 a.m.
Belfield Courts, Philadelphia, Pa.
MOUNT UPDATE: The Mount St. Mary's men's tennis team will look to move to 2-0 on Saturday, Oct. 5, against the La Salle Explorers. So far this season, the Mount has competed in two invitationals, including the annual Mount St. Mary's invitational, as well as one dual match. This will be the Mount's seventh time competing against the Explorers.
LAST TIME OUT: The Mount is coming off a solid 6-1 win against Shepherd last Wednesday, Sept. 25, sweeping doubles and winning all but one singles match. There were standout performances from both senior Mike Zabetakis and freshman Louis Tonon. Zabetakis sealed his win only losing one game at the No. 5 spot, while Tonon fought back after losing the first set to win the match 6-7, 6-3, 6-3 at the No. 4 spot.
ABOUT LA SALLE: La Salle is carrying a 4-0 dual match record with wins over Philadelphia University, Millersville, University of the Sciences and Saint Thomas Aquinas. Some of La Salle's standout players include freshman Brian Balico and junior Thomas MacLeod, who both have dual match records of 4-0.
LAST TIME VS. THE EXPLORERS: After dropping two out of three doubles matches to La Salle on Oct. 6, 2012, the Mount rallied with singles wins in five out of six matches. Matt Blake (No. 1), Mike Salomon (No. 3), Austin Blake (No. 4) and Taylor Place (No. 6) cruised in straight sets, while Mike Zabetakis (No. 5) won his singles match in a third-set tiebreaker.
ALL-TIME SERIES WITH LA SALLE: The Mountaineers have played La Salle a total of six times, winning all six matchups. Last year, the Mount sealed a 5-2 victory over the Explorers.
YEAR BY YEAR RESULTS VS. LA SALLE (6-0)
3/18/89: W, 7-2, Away
9/22/07: W, 6-1, Home
10/9/08: W, 5-2, Away
9/26/10: W, 6-1, Home
10/7/11: W, 4-3, Away
10/6/12: W, 5-2, Home
LEADING THE WAY: Austin Blake and Peter Salomon have both secured three wins in singles play this season. In doubles Salomon and partner Louis Tonon have a record of 4-1.
COACHING STAFF: Head Coach Phil Hammond is entering his 10th season at the helm for the Mount. In his first nine seasons, Hammond has built both the men's and women's programs into perennial contenders in the Northeast Conference. On the women's side, Hammond's coaching record is 117-83, while putting together an 88-103 mark with the men's team. His assistants are sixth-year coach Bill Holloway and the Mount's all-time leader for singles wins, Mike Salomon, who graduated from the Mount in 2013.
UP NEXT: The Mount will head to Lawrenceville, N.J., on Oct. 19, to take on Rider for the last match of the fall season.
