Bucknell University Athletics
Men's Tennis Opens PL Tournament Against Third-Seeded Boston (UPDATED)
4/26/2016 4:35:00 PM | Men's Tennis
***Friday's quarterfinal matches have been moved indoors to The Lewis Indoor Tennis Center. Bucknell's match against Boston University will now start at 3 p.m.***
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The seeds for the Patriot League Men's Tennis Championship were announced on Tuesday, and Bucknell will be the sixth seed in the nine-team bracket. The Bison will take on third-seeded Boston University at 3 p.m. on Friday. The tournament will be held at Lehigh's Ulrich Varsity Courts in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The Lewis Indoor Tennis Center will be used as a backup facility in the case of inclement weather.
Bucknell enters with an overall record of 13-12 and a 2-3 mark in the conference. The Bison recorded league wins over Loyola (Md.) and Lafayette, while suffering losses to Colgate, Lehigh and Navy. They closed the regular season with wins in three of their final five matches.
Two-time Patriot League Player of the Year Nick Bybel leads the way for Bucknell. The senior is 17-4, with all 21 matches being played at No. 1 singles. He went 4-1 against Patriot League opponents. The one loss came to Navy's Austin Jones, who led 5-3 in the third set before Bybel was forced to retire with an injury.
Bybel is one of three Bison players with a record above .500 during the spring season. Sophomore Daniel Wright is 14-7 while competing anywhere from No. 1 to No. 3 singles, including a 3-2 mark against league opponents. Freshman Andrei Vitiuc has had an impressive rookie season, going 12-11 while playing between No. 3 and No. 5 singles.
Boston University is 8-10 overall and 3-1 in the Patriot League. The Terriers had conference wins over Holy Cross, Colgate, and Lehigh. Their lone league loss came to Army West Point in the final match of the regular season.
The Terriers are led by Jay Leelavanich, a Second Team All-Patriot League selection last season. He is 7-7 at No. 1 singles, including a 2-1 record against league opponents.
Both Bucknell and Boston University made the semifinals of last year's conference championship tournament. The Bison lost 4-2 to top-seeded Army West Point, while the Terriers lost 4-1 to second-seeded Navy, which went on to win the title.
Bucknell leads 3-1 in the all-time series with Boston University. The Bison won in 2008, 2009 and 2010, while the Terriers won in 2014. Bybel had a victory at No. 1 singles in the 2014 match.
The Bison are 11-5 all-time in the quarterfinal round of the Patriot League Championship. They have been a sixth seed in the tournament just one other time, falling to third-seeded Navy in the quarterfinals of the 2014 tournament.
2016 PATRIOT LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
Thursday April 28th
#8 Lafayette College vs. #9 Holy Cross – 3 PM
Friday April 29th
#1 US Naval Academy vs. #8/#9 – 10 AM (9 AM if indoors)
#4 Colgate University vs #5 Lehigh University – 10 AM (12 PM if indoors)
#3 Boston University vs. #6 Bucknell University – 2 PM (3 PM if indoors )
#2 Army West Point vs. #7 Loyola University Maryland – 2 PM (6 PM if indoors)
