MOUNT ST. MARY'S (8-7) vs. BUCKNELL (1-9)
Thursday, March 27, 2014, 3 p.m.
Emmitsburg, Md. | Mount Tennis Courts
MOUNT UPDATE: The Mount has six matches remaining in the regular season, including Thursday's showdown with Bucknell at the Mount Tennis Courts. Thursday's match will also be the squad's final time competing at home this season. Freshman Darren Mast leads the team with 10 singles victories, while Austin Blake and Mike Zabetakis pace the Mount in doubles play with 10 wins on the year.
LAST TIME OUT: The Mount cruised to a 7-0 win over UMES at home on March 22. The Mount won at No. 3 doubles as well as No. 5 and 6 singles by default over the short-handed Hawks. Brothers Mike and Matt Zabetakis won at No. 1 doubles, while seniors Maris Beigel and Justin Olexa were 8-1 winners at No. 2 doubles for the Mount. In four singles matches that were played, the Mount was victorious in straight sets.
ABOUT BUCKNELL: The 1-9 Bison picked up their first win of the season by a final score of 6-1 over Loyola Maryland in the Patriot League opener on March 22. So far in 2013-14, Bucknell is 0-1 versus the Northeast Conference with a 5-2 loss to Saint Francis U on Feb. 1. Playing at the No. 1 slot, Nick Bybel leads the Bison with 18 singles wins on the year and is 40-18 in his collegiate career. This is Bucknell's second trip to Emmitsburg this season, having competed in the Mount St. Mary's Invitational during the fall portion of the schedule.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. BUCKNELL: The Mount is 2-14 all-time versus the Bison and is looking to snap a 14-match losing streak to Bucknell. The two sides first squared off in 1992. Since taking over the program before the start of the 2004-05 season, Phil Hammond's squads have faced the Bison on six occasions.
MOUNT VS. PATRIOT LEAGUE: Mount St. Mary's is 11-52 versus teams that currently play in the Patriot League. The Mount's most success has been against Loyola with the Mount holding a 7-4 record in 11 all-time meetings.
GOING FOR THREE IN A ROW: A win over Bucknell would give the Mount its second three-match winning streak this season. The Mount also won three in a row to conclude February.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK: Freshman Mateo DeSomocurcio is off to a 9-2 start to his collegiate career through 11 singles matches and was named NEC Rookie of the Week on March 20. The Mount's No. 3 singles player, DeSomocurcio is 3-0 versus the NEC and is 7-3 in doubles matches this season.
UP NEXT: The Mount concludes March with a road match at George Mason on Sunday, March 30, beginning at 1:30 p.m.
