Flash Points:

• SFU Men's Tennis dropped a 5-2 decision at Saint Joseph's on Saturday.
• The Red Flash snapped a seven-match win streak and is now 13-4 overall.
• SFU won a doubles match and two singles matches.
• Saint Francis competes at the NEC Championships, starting on Friday, April 21.

MERION STATION, Pa. – The Saint Francis Men's Tennis team snapped its seven-match win streak, falling 5-2 at Saint Joseph's on Saturday.  The Red Flash won a doubles match and two singles matches.  Saint Francis is now 13-4 overall, while Saint Joseph's improved to 10-8.
 
"Today was a tough match," said Head Coach Rob Castille. "Credit to Saint Joseph's, who competed hard today and deserved the win. It was good to get a match outside before NEC Championships. This was our first outdoor match this Spring. I felt like St. Joe's was a little mentally stronger than we were today and that was the difference.  We've had a great season so far and we won't focus too much on this loss. We'll get some much needed rest and get back to work over these next two weeks as we prepare for the conference tourney."
 
Freshman Arturo Dell'eva (Verona, Italy/Sanchez Casal Tennis Academy) and sophomore Jan Vit Suntar (Cerklje na Gorenjskem, Slovenia/Gimnazija Kranj) paired up at No. 2 against the Hawks' Scott Battaglia and Beekman Schaeffer.  The Red Flash duo earned a 6-4 win to improve to 7-3 this season.
 
At the top doubles spot, junior Alec Dylan Foo-Kune (Phoenix, Mauritius/International Connections Academy (Md.)) and senior Rodrigo Tico (Guadalajara, Mexico/Colegio de Bachilleres) met SJU's Kyle Chalmers and Tim Stierle.  The SFU pair fell 6-2 and is now 7-5 in dual matches.
 
Seniors Plamen Avuski (Plovdiv, Bulgaria /Math High School ) and Eli Cerdan (Bloomfield, N.J. /Saint Mary High School) combined at No. 3 against Saint Joseph's Peter Dewitt and Dan Tan.  Avuski and Cerdan dropped a 6-4 decision to move to 9-2 this Spring.
 
Avuski competed against the Hawks' Tan at No. 4 singles.  The Red Flash senior claimed a tight opening set, 7-5.  In another tough set, Avuski came out on top, 7-5, for the straight-set victory.  He improved to 12-3 in dual matches.
 
Cerdan took on Saint Joseph's Michael Santa Lucia at the No. 6 position.  The SFU senior won a tough first set, 7-5, but Santa Lucia won the next set, 6-0.  In the deciding set, Cerdan was leading 5-4 when Santa Lucia retired due to injury.  Cerdan is now 10-3 this Spring.
 
In the match at No. 1, Foo-Kune faced SJU's Stiele.  The SFU senior fell 6-2, 6-4 and is now 11-6 this Spring.
 
Freshman Franz Luna (Guatemala City, Guatemala/Laurel Springs) matched up against the Hawks' Chalmers at No. 2.  In a tough first set, Luna came out on top, 7-6, winning the tiebreaker, 7-4.  However, Chalmers responded by taking the next set, 6-2.  In the final set, Chalmers won 6-4.  Luna dropped to 13-3 this season.
 
Tico met SJU's Schaffer at No. 3 singles.  The SFU senior claimed the first set, 7-5, but Schaeffer won the second set, 6-1.  In a tight third set, Schaffer won 7-6, including 7-4 in the tiebreaker.  Tico is now 6-6 in dual matches.
 
Suntar competed against Saint Joseph's Dewitt at No. 5.  The Saint Francis sophomore dropped a 6-2, 6-3 decision and is now 12-3 this Spring.
 
The Red Flash has concluded the regular season and will prepare for the Northeast Conference Championships, which begin on Friday, April 21 at the Mercer County Tennis Center in West Windsor, N.J.
 
Doubles:
1. Chalmers/Stierle(SJU) def. Foo-Kune/Tico(SFU), 6-2
2. Dell'eva/Suntar(SFU) def. Battaglia/Schaeffer(SJU), 6-4
3. Dewitt/Tan(SJU) def. Avuski/Cerdan(SFU), 6-4
Order of Finish: 1,2,3
 
Singles:
1. Stierle(SJU) def. Foo-Kune(SFU), 6-2, 6-4
2. Chalmers(SJU) def. Luna(SFU), 6-7(4), 6-2, 6-4
3. Schaeffer(SJU) def. Tico(SFU), 5-7, 6-1, 7-6(4)
4. Avuski(SFU) def. Tan(SJU), 7-5, 7-5
5. Dewitt(SJU) def. Suntar(SFU), 6-2, 6-3
6. Cerdan(SFU) def. Santa Lucia(SJU), 7-5, 0-6, 5-4, retired
Order of Finish: 5,1,4,3,2,6