Flash Points:

• SFU Men's Tennis dropped a tough 4-1 decision to Bryant in the NEC Championship match on Sunday in West Windsor, N.J.
• The Bulldogs won a tight doubles point and used that momentum to capture three singles wins.
• The Red Flash's Franz Luna (Guatemala City, Guatemala/Laurel Springs) earned a singles win at No. 2 and the rest of the SFU team battled well in singles.
• Saint Francis, who reached the NEC Championship match for the second straight season, finished the season with a 15-5 record.

NEC Tournament Central | NEC Tennis Bracket

WEST WINDSOR, N.J. – The Saint Francis Men's Tennis team dropped a tough 4-1 decision against Bryant in the NEC Championship match on Sunday.  In a tight doubles point, Bryant came out on top.  The Red Flash won one singles match and competed well in multiple singles matches. 
 
Saint Francis, led by Head Coach Rob Castille, finished the season with a 15-5 record, setting a new program-record for wins in a season and making the NEC Championship match for the second straight season after reaching the title match for the first time last year.

"I first want to congratulate Bryant on winning their fourth straight champoinship," said Castille. "I wish them the best of luck at NCAAs and know they will represent the NEC well."

"This is a tough loss. My guys worked their butts off this year in order to put ourselves in position to win the title. We left everything we had on the court and came up short. I could not be more proud of this team and how they conducted themselves all year. We have to learn from this loss and just be better next year. We will use this as motivation over the Summer and into the Fall and work even harder. We have a strong nucleus coming back and are adding some talented freshmen. I am excited for the future of this program."
 
Seniors Plamen Avuski (Plovdiv, Bulgaria /Math High School ) and Eli Cerdan (Bloomfield, N.J. /Saint Mary High School) matched up at No. 2 doubles against Bryant's Josh Kliger and Jorge Ortiz-Garcia.  The Red Flash duo used an early 3-1 lead to propel it to a 6-4 win.  Avuski and Cerdan improved to 11-3 on the season.
 
At No. 1 doubles, junior Alec Dylan Foo-Kune (Phoenix, Mauritius/International Connections Academy (Md.)) and senior Rodrigo Tico (Guadalajara, Mexico/Colegio de Bachilleres) met the Bulldogs' Matt Kuhar and Luke Lorenz.  The Bryant pair took an early 3-0 lead as Foo-Kune and Tico fell 6-3.  Foo-Kune and Tico moved to 8-6 this Spring.
 
In the match at No. 3, freshmen Arturo Dell'eva (Verona, Italy/Sanchez Casal Tennis Academy) and Franz Luna (Guatemala City, Guatemala/Laurel Springs) competed against Bryant's Artur Jakubowski and Michael Plutt.  The SFU duo was trailing 3-2, but battled to take a 4-3 lead.  However, Bryant came out on top, 6-4.  That clinched the doubles point for the Bulldogs.

"I thought we played some great doubles and probably should have come away with the point," said Castille. "Plamen and Eli were outstanding and my two freshmen, Arturo and Franz, had several opportunities but just couldn't close the deal. This was only their third match together all year, so I was pleased with how hard they fought and how competitive of a match it was."
 
Luna took on Bryant's Lorenz at No. 2.  Luna jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the first set, but Lorenz battled back to tighten up the set.  Luna came out on top, 7-6, winning the tiebreaker, 7-4.  He then shook off an early 2-1 deficit to win the second set, 6-3.  The SFU rookie finished the season with a 15-3 dual-match record.
 
Foo-Kune matched up against the Bulldogs' Kuhar at the top singles spot.  After falling down 4-1 in the first set, Foo-Kune brought the set within one, 4-3, but Kuhar won 6-3.  Foo-Kune dropped a 6-0 decision in the second set to conclude the season with a 12-7 mark.
 
At No. 4 singles, Tico faced Bryant's Guido Argentini.  The SFU senior fell behind 3-1 in the set, but closed the gap to 5-4 before falling 6-4.  In the second set, Tico battled from a 4-1 deficit to tie the set, but dropped a 6-4 decision.  Tico ended the Spring with a 7-7 record.
 
Avuski competed against Bryant's Plutt in a tough match at No. 5.  In a back-and-forth opening set, Avuski fell 7-5.  The duo had another close battle in the second set, before a break gave Plutt a 5-3 advantage.  However, Avuski would get a break of his own to tie the set at 5-5 before dropping a 7-5 set.  The senior finished the year with a 14-4 dual-match record.
 
In the match at No. 3, Dell'eva met the Bulldogs' Jakubowski.  In a very tight first set, Dell'eva fell 7-6, including a 7-2 tiebreaker.  In another close set, Dell'eva was leading 6-5 when the match was stopped.  Dell'eva ended his freshman season with an 11-3 record in dual matches.
 
At No. 6, Cerdan took on Bryant's Ortiz-Garcia.  The first set went back and forth before a break helped Ortiz-Garcia to win the set, 6-4.  However, Cerdan battled through a tight second set to earn his own 6-4 win.  The senior was leading 1-0 in the final set when the match was stopped.  Cerdan ended his senior season with an 11-4 dual-match record.

"After losing the doubles point, I knew it would be tough to win four of six singles matches," said Castille. "Bryant is solid from top to bottom, so I knew it would be an uphill challenge. Our guys fought hard and were clawing their way back into the match. It was just a little too late."

Doubles:
1. Kuhar/Lorenz(BRY) def. Foo-Kune/Tico(SFU), 6-3
2. Avuski/Cerdan(SFU) def. Kliger/Ortiz-Garcia(BRY), 6-4
3. Jakubowski/Plutt(BRY) def. Dell'eva/Luna(SFU), 6-4
 
Singles:
1. Kuhar(BRY) def. Foo-Kune(SFU), 6-3, 6-0
2. Luna(SFU) def. Lorenz(BRY), 7-6(4), 6-3
3. Dell'eva(SFU) vs. Jakubowski(BRY), 6-7(2), 6-5, unfinished
4. Argentini(BRY) def. Tico(SFU), 6-4, 6-4
5. Plutt(BRY) def. Avuski(SFU), 7-5, 6-3
6. Cerdan(SFU) vs. Ortiz-Garcia(BRY), 4-6, 6-4, 1-0, unfinished