Men's Tennis Set to Face Colgate, Boston University in Syracuse

Bucknell (11-4, 1-0 PL) at Colgate (3-12, 2-2 PL)
When: Friday, March 31, 4 p.m.
Where: Drumlins Tennis Center, Syracuse, N.Y.

Bucknell (11-4, 1-0 PL) at Boston University (8-10, 0-1 PL)
When: Saturday, Apr. 1, 3 p.m.
Where: Drumlins Tennis Center, Syracuse, N.Y.

Bucknell at a Glance

After a two-week break from competitive matches, the Bucknell men's tennis team is back in action this weekend with a pair of Patriot League duals. The Bison take on Colgate on Friday and Boston University on Saturday, with both matches to be held indoors at the Drumlin Tennis Center in Syracuse.
Bucknell heads north with an 11-match winning streak in tow. After dropping their first four duals to Florida Gulf Coast, Southern Miss, Delaware, and Villanova, the Bison have not lost since. A 5-2 win over a good Drexel team on Feb. 5 started the run, and it has grown into the fifth-longest winning streak in school history. Bucknell won 23 straight bridging the 1970 and 1971 seasons, and the team has also seen 15-match streaks in 1926/1927, 1937/1938, and 1998.
The Bison have six matches remaining in the regular season, all against Patriot League competition. Five of those six will be on the road or at neutral sites.
The Bison are getting good contributions from up and down the lineup and have been especially strong in doubles. The squad is a combined 29-10 in dual-match doubles and has taken the doubles point in each of the last 12 duals.
Freshman Brendan McDonald is a stellar 22-3 in doubles on the full season, including fall tournament play. He is 13-1 in duals with 13 straight wins, including 10-0 at No. 1 doubles playing alongside Harrison Gold (9-0) and Nick Mueller (1-0). Gold and Mueller are both 14-3 in doubles on the season.
Freshman Amar Tahirovic has the team's best singles record at 19-7. He is 10-4 in dual matches, including a 4-1 record at No. 1 and 6-3 at No. 2. Tahirovic has won five matches in a row.
Mueller had a nine-match singles winning streak come to an end last time out but is still 12-4 on the season.

Colgate at a Glance/Series History

The Raiders are 3-12 on the season and 2-2 in Patriot League action. They have wins over Holy Cross (4-3) and Lafayette (6-1) along with losses to Army (6-1) and Lehigh (5-2).
Jack Selati plays in the No. 1 spot for Colgate, and he was named Patriot League Player of the Week after posting singles and doubles wins against Lafayette and Holy Cross.
Bucknell is 20-55 all-time against Colgate in a series that dates back to 1942, but the Bison have won three of the last four.
Bucknell won 5-2 last season at the Central PA Tennis Center. Harrison Gold came back from a set down to Selati to win the match-clincher at No. 1 singles. The Raiders won the doubles point, but the Bison won five of the six singles matches, getting victories from Gold, Michael Owen, Tim Zelikovsky, Ink Chen, and Nicolas Grunig.

Boston University at a Glance/Series History

The Terriers are 8-10 in spring dual matches and are coming off a 4-2 loss to Navy in their Patriot League opener last Sunday.
Boston University's top singles player has been No. 2 man Corey Craig, who is 14-7 overall and 9-5 in dual matches. The freshman beat Navy's Gavin Seagraves 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday.
In doubles, the Terriers are 9-6 at the No. 2 spot in dual matches, including a 7-4 record from Cole Knutsen and Jonah Dickson.
Bucknell has won seven of the 10 all-time meetings with Boston University, including two victories last season. The Bison won 4-0 during the regular season in South Williamsport, then had to rally for a tight 4-3 win in the Patriot League Tournament quarterfinals in Annapolis.
In that postseason match, Michael Owen and Tim Zelikovsky won the tying and clinching points just moments apart to lift the fourth-seeded Bison past the fifth-seeded Terriers.

Up Next

Following this weekend's matches, Bucknell will host Navy on Senior Day on Saturday, Apr. 8 at 1 p.m.
After having a match rained out at UC Santa Cruz during Spring Break, the Bison have added Holy Cross to the schedule on Sunday, Apr. 16. That will be an 11 a.m. contest in Worcester, Mass.
The Patriot League Tournament starts the following week at Colgate.

Men's Tennis Set to Face Colgate, Boston University in Syracuse

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Ink Chen

Nicolas Grunig

Brendan McDonald

Nick Mueller

Michael Owen

Amar Tahirovic

Tim Zelikovsky

Men's Tennis Set to Face Colgate, Boston University in Syracuse

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Ink Chen

Nicolas Grunig

Brendan McDonald

Nick Mueller

Michael Owen

Amar Tahirovic

Tim Zelikovsky

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