GRANTHAM, Pa. – The Lebanon Valley College men's tennis team dropped a 6-3 Commonwealth Conference decision to defending Commonwealth Conference champion Messiah College Saturday afternoon.

Messiah (7-2, 3-0 CC) led 2-1 after doubles competition, then clinched the match by winning four of the six singles contests.

Junior Shawn Becker and senior Erik Vargo recorded the lone doubles point for Lebanon Valley (4-7, 1-2 CC), winning at the No. 2 slot.

In singles play, Vargo earned his sixth consecutive victory with a win at the No. 1 flight. After dropping the first set 6-1, he rallied with a 6-3 triumph to force a 10-point super-tiebreaker, which he won 10-7 to push his season record to 11-3. Freshman Matt Grodzinski added a victory at No. 4 singles.

Lebanon Valley returns to the court on Sunday, when it visits FDU-Florham for a non-conference match starting at noon.

SINGLES
1. Erik Vargo (LV) def. Jonathan Stanley, 1-6, 6-3, 10-7
2. Nathan Ipsen (M) def. Stu Hartman, 6-1, 6-1
3. Jonathan Siemen (M) def. Zach Kaufman, 6-0, 6-1
4. Matt Grodzinski (LV) def. Samuel Shorts, 7-6, 6-4
5. Jason Nolt (M) def. Jared Zeigler, 7-5, 6-4
6. William Tanis (M) def. Shawn Becker, 6-1, 4-0 (retired)

DOUBLES
1. Stanley/Ipsen (M) def. Hartman/Zeigler, 8-5
2. Becker/Vargo (LV) def. Siemen/Tanis, 8-3
3. Nolt/Shorts (M) def. Grodzinski/Matt Hotchkiss, 8-5

[Photo - Senior Erik Vargo]

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