The Lancaster Bible College men's tennis team opened its 2021 campaign with a victory on Wednesday afternoon, as the Chargers defeated Clarks Summit, 8-1 at Birchwood Tennis Club in Clarks Summit, Pa. The match was the first in over a year for the Chargers who hadn't played since March 6, 2020 at Mount Aloysius.
 
Doubles: Lancaster Bible jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead by sweeping all three doubles matches, as the No. 1 doubles team of Devon Clemmer and Micah Weaver earned an 8-4 victory. The No. 2 team of Keven Vallette and AJ Kwiatkowski came out on top with an 8-2 victory, while the No. 3 team of Spencer Grogan and William Hilliard was victorious, 8-1.
 
Singles: Clemmer finished off his solid day with a 6-0, 6-0 victory at No. 1 singles, while Weaver came up just short in a crazy match at No. 2 singles. Weaver took the opening set, 6-3, but lost the second by the same score. Instead of a third set, Weaver and opponent Andrew Taft played a super tie-breaker which is the first player to 10. The tie-breaker went back-and-forth well past 10 however, as Taft came out on top, 16-14.
 
Vallette earned a 6-1, 6-2 victory at No. 3 singles, while Kwiatkowski was a winner at No. 4 singles, 6-0, 6-1. Grogan picked up a 6-1, 6-0 victory at No. 5 singles, while Hilliard was a winner in a close match at No. 6 singles. Hilliard took the first set, 6-2, but lost the second in a tie-breaker, 7-6. Hilliard rebounded however, and earned a 10-4 victory in the deciding super tie-breaker.
 
The Coach Says: "It was great to see our men back in action today," Lancaster Bible Head Coach Rod Baughman said. "I know they were ready to do something other than practice, and I thought they played well. Our doubles teams played well despite the fact we are still considering who the partners are going to be, and I think the tight matches that some of the guys played today will help them throughout the season."
 
News & Notes: Lancaster Bible is now 3-7 all-time against Clarks Summit…Wednesday's matchup was the first between the two teams since April 5, 2017 when the Chargers lost to Clarks Summit, 5-4…Vallette's doubles victory was the 18^th of his career, and he now moves into a tie for the fifth-most doubles victories in program history.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible will host its first match of the season on Thursday, March 18 at 4 p.m…The match is scheduled to be played at the Hempfield Rec Center in Landisville, Pa.