Men's Tennis Drops 7-2 Decision to Western Connecticut

DANBURY, Conn. —The Western Connecticut State University men's tennis team secured a second-place finish and a second-seeded bye for the upcoming Little East Conference Tournament with a 7-2 victory over Bridgewater State University at Westside Courts on Saturday afternoon.

The Colonials, 8-2 overall and 4-1 in the league with a match at UMass Boston on Sunday remaining, raced out to a 3-0 lead after sweeping the doubles' competition.

Junior Troy Pandolfi (Danbury, CT) and senior John Phillips (Harford, CT) cruised to straight set wins at first and second solos, to clinch the conference victory.

The Bears, 7-8 overall and 2-4 in the LEC, earned victories at fourth and sixth singles. Nicholas Desisto (Uxbridge, MA) defeated Andrew Kelley (Weston, CT), 6-4, 6-0, while Cody Farrell (Scituate, MA) edged out freshman Ryan Klem (Newport, RI), 7-6 (7-3), 6-4.

Brian Bucknam (Woodbury, CT) and Austin Werner (Fairfield, CT) closed out the win with straight-set victories at third and fifth singles.

The Colonials will have a bye for the LEC quarterfinals and will host the winner of Tuesday's #3 Rhode Island College vs. #6 Salem State University match, on Thursday, May 5.

Top seeded and regular-season champion UMass Dartmouth will host #4 Southern Maine versus #5 Bridgewater State winner in the semifinals. The 2011 championship will be played at the highest remaining seed on Saturday, May 7.