BUCKHANNON, WV (April 8)-- The Shepherd College men's tennis team accomplished a number of feats on Sunday with their convincing 8-1 victory over conference rival West Virginia Wesleyan here on Sunday.
For starters, The Rams uprooted a team most recently ranked 38 in the nation in Division II tennis. Secondly, it's the first time the Rams have beaten the Bobcats in men's tennis since 1992. Finally, Shepherd has taken over the top spot in the West Virginia conference.
"We are in control of the conference now," said sixth-year coach Chris Stambaugh. "It was a very hard-fought win. Wesleyan has been very tough for us over the years that I've been coaching--and especially tough in Buckhannon. They have tons of fans watching and cheering for them down there. We don't see too many tennis matches in that kind of environment."
Shepherd improves to 17-1 overall and 5-0 in the WVIAC. The Bobcats fall to 5-4.
The Rams return to home action at the Holiday Inn in Martinsburg with two conference matches this Saturday against Davis & Elkins and Bluefield State.
SHEPHERD 8 WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN 1
SINGLES
1. Scott Eyler (SC) d. Ben Sprenger 7-5, 6-4
2. Colin Saluja (WVW) d. Tim Halter 6-0, 6-4
3. Mike Farrell (SC) d. Ryan Walker 6-4, 2-0, retired, injury
4. Thomas Bohrnstedt (SC) d. Clarke Campbell 6-2, 6-0
5. Greg Selby (SC) d. Scott Green 6-2, 6-3
6. Brian Clarke (SC) d. Grant DeHaven 6-0, 6-2
DOUBLES
1. Farrell-Bohrnstedt (SC) d. Sprenger-Walker 8-6
2. Halter-Selby (SC) d. Green-Campbell 8-5
3. Eyler-Wray Sherman (SC) d. Saluja-Steve Wahl 9-7