March 16, 2006
Shoremen Best Div. II Florida Tech, 5-4
Edison Clinches Match With Win at No. 4 Singles

MELBOURNE, FL -- Senior Mike Edison (Darnestown, MD/Good Counsel) won in three sets at No. 4 singles to lift the Washington College men's tennis team to a 5-4 win over Division II host Florida Institute of Technology this afternoon in Melbourne, FL. The Shoremen improved to 3-2 with the win, while the Panthers fell to 2-12 with the loss. The match was played according to Division II men's rules with one point being awarded for each doubles competition.

Florida Tech took an early 2-1 lead in the match by winning two of the three doubles matches. Clifford Giel and Keith Kessler, the 17th-ranked doubles team in Division II, bested Washington junior Arturo Solis (Guatemala, Guatemala/Valle Verde School) and senior Maciek Prytula (Szczecin, Poland/PLO), 8-4, at No. 1. David Fowler and Diego Quiros bested Washington senior Tim Riskie (Woodbury, NJ/Woodbury) and freshman Brian Danver (Montgomery Village, MD/St. Albans), 8-5, at No. 2. The Shoremen picked up their point at No. 3 doubles where freshmen Anantha Bhaskar (Chennai, India/National Open School) and Rafael Roldan (Quito, Ecuador/Academia Cotopaxi) were 8-3 winners against Christian Smith and Jeremy Casperson.

Florida Tech took the top two singles matches as Kessler beat Solis, 6-2, 6-4, at No. 1 and Giel, ranked 27th in Division II in singles, bested Riskie, 6-1, 6-1, at No. 2. Washington got straight set wins at No. 3, No. 5, and No. 6 singles. Bhaskar beat Quiros, 6-2, 6-3, at No. 3, Prytula beat Fowler, 6-4, 6-0, at No. 5, and Roldan beat Casperson, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 6. Edison's match-winning victory came against Smith, 6-1, 2-6, 6-4, at No. 4.

"It was great for Mike, one of our seniors, to clinch the win in such a close match," commented Washington head coach Constantine Ananiadis. "This victory puts us in a good position heading into our match against Mary Washington. It was important for us to get a win in a close match."

The Shoremen will play at 12th-ranked Mary Washington Saturday at 3:00 p.m.

MATCH RESULTS