GARDEN CITY, N.Y. (April 5, 2018) -- In a back-and-forth affair on Thursday afternoon, the Franklin Pierce University men's tennis team was narrowly defeated on the road, 5-4, at Adelphi in Northeast-10 Conference play.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 8-9 (3-3 NE10), while Adelphi improves to 3-8 (3-3 NE10).

Franklin Pierce opened the match in strong form, by taking all three doubles matches. At first doubles, freshman Roberto Chong (Puigpunyent, Spain) and junior Andrew Schadt (Tolland, Conn.) pulled out an 8-6 win over Adelphi senior Matteo Cannavera and sophomore Sabin Adrian Saveluc. It was equally close at second doubles, where sophomore Yuval Barak (Zicron Ya'akov, Israel) and junior Martin Lawrence (Acton, Mass.) squeaked past sophomore Ilya Kalabukhau and freshman Luke Attride-Stirlin, 8-6. Meanwhile, at third doubles, it was an 8-3 triumph for junior James Bisazza (West Barnstable, Mass.) and sophomore Matthew Toombs (Pleasanton, Calif.), over sophomore David Robres de Veciana and junior Connor Dove.

Unfortunately for the Ravens, things would not go as successfully in singles play. Adelphi would rally with five wins across six singles matches to claim the team match by the 5-4 score. The team match would ultimately hinge on a pair of three-set matches, but Franklin Pierce could get only one of the two to go its way. At second singles, Bisazza rallied back for a 1-6, 6-1, 6-4 win over Saveluc. Meanwhile, sixth singles went the other way, with Dove rallying past sophomore Ryan Plummer (Raymond, Maine), 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Each of Adelphi's remaining singles victories came in straight sets.

The Ravens return to the court on Saturday, April 7, when they return home to host Bentley in an NE10 match at noon in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce tennis apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).