LORETTO, Pa. (Feb. 5, 2013) – Over the weekend the Saint Francis U men's tennis team battled but came up short 4-2 against Bucknell on Saturday and 0-7 to Lehigh Sunday.
 
Despite very close scores the SFU men, already fighting a point down, gave the Bucknell Bison a tight match and strong upsets at No. 2 and No. 4 positions. Going into the match, the Red Flash men were forced to forfeit a point when No. 4 player Chris Jimenez (Bayside, N.Y./St. Francis Preparatory) couldn't travel due to injury forcing a 4-2 loss.
 
With Jimenez out of doubles, SFU had to play mixed positions with players hoping to secure the doubles point. Juan Pardo (Bogota, Colombia/Colegio Andino) and Lawson Barter (Chicago, Ill./Loyola), SFU's No. 3 team last year played No. 2 while Sergio Carvajal (Nueva Esparta, Venezuela/U.E. Fray Elias Maria Sendra) and Washi Gervais (Longueuil, Quebec/College Stanislas) moved to No. 1. The Bison, playing an established doubles lineup, easily took the doubles point.
 
Forced to move everyone up a singles position, SFU secured two points, picking up wins at No. 2 and No. 5. Gervais, playing at No. 2 for SFU easily handed senior Kelly Morque a 6-2, 6-4 loss. Morgue, one of Bison's top players for four years, led them with a career 99 wins in singles and doubles. SFU's Barter moved up to the No. 5 position and had a great win off Bison sophomore Octavio Canibe.
 
In the first set Barter battled, holding serve until he broke Canibe to win the first set 7-5. In the second set, Barter got broken at 5-4 giving Bucknell the set. Down 4-3 in the super tiebreak Barter came back to win 7-5. With a lucky ace on a net chord, Barter went up 8-5. Able to break, Barter took the set 10-6.
 
"Lawson played classic serve and volley," head coach Paul Tobin said. "We needed the win and he came through."
 
SFU's Carvajal came within two points of taking No. 3 Singles against Bucknell senior All- American Evan Zimmer. Zimmer leads the Bison with 121 all-time career wins. Carvajal up 5-3 on serve and love 40, won the next five points to take the first set 6-3. With Carvajal nursing a forearm cramp and taking an injury timeout, Zimmer was able to come back and take the second set 6-3. Carvajal up 6-3 in the super tiebreaker flubbed  two double faults edging a 6-5 lead. Zimmer held two serving opportunities followed by another break to close out the match tie breaker 10-8.
 
"I really thought Sergio had the match," Tobin said. "He was holding serve so well; those two double faults were disappointing, his win would have closed the gap to a 4-3 loss."
 
SFU's Pardo moving up to No. 4 in the line-up had a disappointing first set to junior Kyle Rosen. Pardo up 5-2 in the first and on serve, lost five games in row bowing 7-5. Pardo fought back in the second down 5-1, came back to 5-4, but was unable to continue his steak losing 6-4.
 
"At this point I am always disappointed when we lose," Tobin said. "We had some very close matches that could have easily turned things around. Going into these matches already giving up a point hurts, but I am very optimistic about what lies ahead for our program."
 
The Red Flash men's tennis team never fully recovered from its tight 4-2 loss to Bucknell on Saturday night, coming up short against a strong Lehigh team that posted No. 3 in the Patriot league and a 13-6 record last year.
 
"We got blown away in doubles and that set the mood for the rest of the matches," Tobin said. "Our men just did not play well and their energy level was poor."
 
SFU failed to draw any close matches which took less than three hours to complete. The best showing came from Barter who pushed junior Timur Chemykh 6-4, 6-2. Even red-hot Gervais at No. 2 for Saint Francis, lost his three-match winning streak against Mountain Hawks sophomore Mitchell Peterson, who went 14-3 last season, 6-1, 6-1. Carvajal, at No. 3 for the Red Flash took senior Matt Savron last fall to a tight three setter, but fell to him Sunday 6-4, 6-3.
 
"We were just outmatched today, plain and simple," Tobin said. "Even if we had a healthy lineup, I don't think it would have made a difference. Lehigh was just to good today.”
 
Saint Francis is next in action Feb. 16 at Drexel.