March 13, 2008

Final Stats

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The Navy tennis team closed its series of matches on its spring break trip to Florida by posting a 7-0 victory over Bethune-Cookman Thursday at the City Island Tennis Complex in Daytona Beach. Previously on their trip, the Mids posted a 4-3 win over Appalachian State and lost a 7-0 decision to ninth-ranked North Carolina.

"We played very well today," said Navy head coach John Officer. "We have played great in doubles all season and today was no exception. The top half of our singles lineup also had a strong day."

Navy (12-6) lost only three games in quickly winning the three doubles matches from Bethune-Cookman. Navy's No. 3 team of Nick Birger (Fr., Belleville, Ill.) and Jason Hill (Jr., Marietta, Ga.) did not lose a game in its win over Kristofer Martin and Jerome Ward, while Navy's No. 1 team of Nate Nelms (Jr., St. Mary's, Ga.) and Johnny Waters (Jr., Papillion, Neb.) posted an 8-1 win over Stefan James and Emil Vassilev to run its winning streak to four matches.

In singles, the top three players in Navy's lineup lost a combined 10 games in recording straight-set victories at each flight. Nelms, who posted a combined record of 5-1 on the trip, recorded a 6-2, 6-0 win over Vassilev at No. 1 singles, Waters tallied a 6-3, 6-3 win over Christian Cruz at No. 2 singles and Hill posted a 6-0, 6-2 win over James at No. 3 singles.

Also picking up singles victories for Navy on the day were Ramsey Lemaich (So., Danville, Calif.) at No. 4, team captain Alex James (Sr., Visalia, Calif.) at No. 5 and Owen Bullard (Fr., Concord, N.C.) at No. 6. Lemaich and James both won their respective matches in straight sets, while Bullard posted a 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (13-11) win over Martin.

Navy will now return home for a pair of matches next week against Penn (Wed., March 19) and Richmond (Sat., March 22). Weather permitting, both matches will be contested outdoors at the U.S. Naval Academy.

"We are very eager for the opportunity to face a talented team in Penn," said Officer. "We will have to play extremely hard and concentrate well to have success against them."

Navy (12-6) def. Bethune-Cookman (2-8), 7-0
Doubles -- Navy wins the doubles point (match finish order: 3-1-2)
1 - Nelms / Waters (N) def. James / Vassilev, 8-1
2 - James / Lemaich (N) def. Cruz / Jackson, 8-2
3 - Nick Birger / Hill (N) def. Martin / Ward, 8-0
Singles (match finish order: 1-3-5-4-2-6)
1 - Nate Nelms (N) def. Emil Vassilev, 6-2, 6-0
2 - Johnny Waters (N) def. Christian Cruz, 6-3, 6-3
3 - Jason Hill (N) def. Stefan James, 6-0, 6-2
4 - Ramsey Lemaich (N) def. Yannick Jackson, 6-2, 6-4
5 - Alex James (N) def. Jerome Ward, 7-5, 6-1
6 - Owen Bullard (N) def. Kristofer Martin, 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (13-11)