Battling Bishop men's tennis falls in USA South semifinals

Burlington, NC - The North Carolina Wesleyan men's tennis team saw its 2008 season come to an end in the semifinals of the USA South Tournament for the second straight year. After downing Ferrum 9-0 to advance, the Bishops fell to Methodist University by the same score on Saturday. Wesleyan finishes the season with a 9-8 record under first-year head coach Dominic Modise, marking the first winning season for the program since 1976.

Highlighting a solid season for the Bishops was freshman Antti Saari, who finished with a 13-3 record at #1 singles. In addition to being named First Team All-Conference and USA South Rookie of the Year, Saari became Wesleyan's first regionally ranked player in program history when he cracked the top-20 at #17. Saari was also named to the All-Tournament team.

Sophomore Matt Smith and freshman Kalpesh Patel also turned in solid seasons. Smith turned in a 10-6 record at #4 singles, while Patel had an even 8-8 record at #6. The Bishops, therefore, can look forward to building on its winning record and third place finish in 2009!