Bearcats Will Travel to Battle NWC Rivals Linfield and Lewis & Clark

By Evan Giddings, Student Assistant Athletics Communications Director

SALEM, ORE. -- On the road for the first time during the spring season, the Willamette University men's tennis team will take on rivals Linfield College and Lewis & Clark College this weekend. Match times are set for Saturday, March 14 at 1 p.m. (PST) at theLinfield Tennis Center and on Sunday, March 15 at 11 a.m. at the Pioneer Tennis Dome.

Last weekend, the Bearcats recorded their first victory of the year, dropping University of Puget Sound 6-3 and improving Willamette's record to 1-3 overall and 1-2 in the Northwest Conference.

The Bearcats picked up a key win at #1 doubles in a battle between Willamette's team of Gunnar Lee (Jr., Hilo, HI/St. Joseph HS) and Jacob Blaisdell (Fr., Honolulu, HI/Punahou School) and Puget Sound's team of Joe McRoberts and Andrew Struzenberg. It was Lee and Blaisdell's third win of the spring season and their second win while competing in the #1 spot.

WU also won #2 doubles against UPS, with Sam Wexman (Jr., Tiburon, CA/Tamiscal HS) and Blake Brash (Jr., Boise, ID/Boise HS) garnering the victory by a score of 8-5 against Daniel Deuel and Chris Severt.

In the singles competition, the Bearcats captured wins at #2, #3, #4 and #5 singles, with Jack Schreiber (Sr., Solana Beach, CA/The Grauer School) leading the way with a 6-4,6-2 triumph at the #2 position.

Linfield is currently 1-5 on the season and 1-4 in NWC play. Lewis & Clark owns a 4-3 overall record and has achieved a 4-2 conference record.

In an 8-1 loss last weekend to Pacific University, the Wildcats had a singles lineup of Kelsey Rosborough (So.), Joel Trousdale (Jr.), Liam Spearnak (Fr.), Lukas Kleinman (Sr.), Micah Roos (Sr.), and Alec Wisthoff (So.).

As for Linfield's doubles team last week, Rosborough and Kleinman teamed up to play #1, Roos and Tim Hawkins (Jr.) played #2, and Trousdale and Spearnak competed at #3.

On Sunday, the Bearcats will face a Lewis & Clark team that bested Willamette 8-1 on March 1. In that match, the Pioneers' singles lineup was Michael Brewer (So.), Kevin Ross (Jr.), Morgan Joyce (Sr.), Daniel Hahm (Jr.), Harrison Collins (Fr.), and Gordon Barrows (Fr.) at #1 through #6, respectively.

Willamette's only win came in #1 doubles as the Bearcat tandem of Lee and Blaisell defeated Lewis and Clark's team of Joyce and Barrows. Also competing for L&C in doubles were Brewer and Ross at #2 and Hahm and Collins at #3.