By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University men's tennis team has clinched the top seed in next week's Little East Conference tournament.

The Bears won a first-place showdown with Rhode Island College, 5-2, on Tuesday afternoon at the Rosen Memorial Tennis Courts to wrap up at least a share of the regular-season championship.

BSU (8-4) improved to 5-0 in the Little East and can win the title outright with a victory at Vermont State Castleton Saturday afternoon or with a RIC loss to Salem State.

By virtue of the win over the defending champion Anchormen (8-3, 4-1), the Bears are in possession of the tiebreaker.

BSU won the Little East regular-season and tourney titles in 2024 when it made a first trip to the NCAA Division III tournament.

The Bears won their sixth straight match on Tuesday while RIC had an eight-match winning streak halted.

The teams met in the Little East championship match last season with BSU losing, 5-1.

The Bears opened the match by recording three wins in doubles for the first point.

At No. 1 doubles, senior Adam Beatrice (Rockland, Mass.) and junior Khiem Nguyen (Burlington, Vt.) defeated sophomores Travis Chartier (Rehoboth, Mass.) and Kyle Neuendorf (Attleboro, Mass.), 6-0.

Freshman Will Horton (Lakeville, Mass.) and senior Ryan Hebert (Taunton, Mass.) won over sophomores Ethan Clegg (Chepachet, R.I.) and James McShane (Riverside, R.I.), 7-5, at No. 2.

The third doubles pairing of junior Tom Ayson (Plymouth, Mass.) and junior Anthony Lucas (Weymouth, Mass.) scored a 7-6 (10-8) win over senior Sairaj Srinivasan (Cedar Grove, N.J.) and freshman John Vaughan (East Providence, R.I.).

The lead went to 2-0 when Horton prevailed at No. 1 singles over Chartier, recording a 6-1, 6-3 victory.

Four of the other five singles matches went three sets.

BSU also received singles wins from Nguyen at No. 3 over Srinivasan, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, and Ayson at No. 4 as he defeated McShane, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2. Ayson secured the decisive fourth point.

Hebert was a winner at No. 6 as he stopped Neuendorf, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.

RIC's Clegg took No. 2 singles over Beatrice, 6-1, 7-6 (7-5) and Vaughan defeated Lucas at No. 5, 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.

BSU will play its final non-conference match of the season on Thursday, traveling to Newport, R.I., to face Salve Regina at 3:30 p.m.

After playing in Vermont on Saturday to close the regular season against the Spartans, BSU will be idle until the semifinal round of the Little East tourney on April 30.

RIC also has a non-conference match this week, hosting Norwich on Wednesday at 2 p.m. before playing Salem State Saturday.