Men's Tennis Set for Pair of Matches at Binghamton This Weekend

Bucknell (1-0) vs. NJIT (2-0)
When: Saturday, Feb. 3, 3:30 p.m.
Where: Lane-Starke Tennis Center, Binghamton, N.Y.
LIVE RESULTS

Bucknell vs. Binghamton (1-2) or Siena (1-2)
When: Sunday, Feb. 4, 8:45 a.m. or 11:30 a.m.
Where: Lane-Starke Tennis Center, Binghamton, N.Y.

Bucknell at a Glance

Fresh off a 7-0 win over Saint Francis in the first dual match of the 2024 spring campaign, the Bison men's tennis team hits the road for a pair of matches in Binghamton, N.Y., this weekend. Bucknell will play NJIT at approximately 3:30 p.m. on Saturday (immediately following the Binghamton-Siena match). The winners will then meet on Sunday at 8:45 a.m., followed by a dual between the two losing teams.
Sophomore Amar Tahirovic earned Patriot League Player of the Week honors on Tuesday after posting convincing wins at No. 1 singles and doubles in the win over the Red Flash. He teamed with classmate Brendan McDonald for a 6-2 win in doubles and then defeated Marc Fuste 6-2, 6-2 in singles.
McDonald and senior Tim Zelikovsky were also two-time winners. Zelikovsky paired with freshman Liam Kilmer to provide the clinching doubles point, and he later won a three-set thriller over Mathis Tremblay at No. 4 singles.
Tahirovic, Adam Stavrakas, Oscar Bain Moreno de Vega, McDonald, and freshman Will Robinson all won in straight sets in singles. Robinson's 6-2, 6-4 victory over Gregory Troyan on Court 6 was the match-clincher.
Bucknell is coming off an outstanding fall tournament season. Over four events, the Bison combined for a 58-21 singles record and a 33-18 doubles mark.
Bain posted a team-high 10 singles wins against only three losses, while Tahirovic, Kilmer, and Zelikovsky all went 9-1. Kilmer, a freshman, won his first eight career matches before dropping a three-setter to Virginia's Stefan Regalia.
Tahirovic (13), Bain (12), and Brendan McDonald (10) all hit double figures in doubles wins. The duo of Bain and Tahirovic was a perfect 5-0.

NJIT at a Glance/Series History

After winning 15 dual matches last season, the Highlanders are already off to a 2-0 start after beating Marist (7-0) and Rider (5-2) last weekend in Newark.
Pablo Perez Ramos, a sophomore from the Canary Islands, plays No. 1 singles and doubles and is 2-0 in both this spring. He teams with Wil Jenkins at No. 1 doubles, and the duo won both of its matches by 6-0 scores last week.
Bucknell and NJIT have split six all-time meetings, although the Highlanders have won the last three. That includes a 5-2 win at the Central PA Tennis Center in the most recent clash in the spring of 2021. Michael Owen (No. 1) and Nick Mueller (No. 3) earned singles wins for the Bison, but NJIT won the other four, two coming in three sets.

Binghamton at a Glance/Series History

The Bearcats are off to a 1-2 start this spring. After dropping matches to Cleveland State (6-1) and Youngstown State (7-0) in Ohio, they bounced back with a 4-3 win over Le Moyne at the Lane-Starke Tennis Center last weekend.
The Le Moyne match was a conference clash, as both teams are in their first seasons playing in the Northeast Conference. The Bearcats are an associate member, while Le Moyne is in the NEC for all sports as it transitions up to the Division I level.
No. 1 man Ronin Lotlikar provided the clinching point against the Dolphins with a three-set win. William Morais Binnie, Filipe Costa, and James McPherson also won to help Binghamton come from behind after dropping the doubles point.
Lotlikar went 13-1 in fall tournament competition, including a win over Bucknell's Adam Stavrakas at the NateRentals Binghamton Championships, and is now 14-3 on the full season.
Bucknell is 1-9 all-time against Binghamton in dual matches. The Bison won the first meeting in 2000, but the Bearcats have captured all nine since then, although the two sides have not met since 2016.

Siena at a Glance/Series History

Siena is 1-2 in duals this season, including a 5-2 win over Stonehill in the fall and a pair of losses to Ivy League sides Dartmouth (7-0) and Brown (6-1) in January.
Duarte Melo came from a set down to win at No. 5 singles for the Saints' lone point against Brown.
Oscar Martinez has a team-best 6-4 record in singles and 6-3 in doubles. Martinez defeated Bucknell's Brendan McDonald in the fall at Binghamton's tournament. Other head-to-head singles matchups from the fall include Amar Tahirovic defeating Fabio Varella and Tim Zelikovsky beating Dylan Breen.
Bucknell is a perfect 6-0 all-time in dual matches with Siena. That includes a narrow 4-3 win last season in Hershey, Pa. Singles wins from then-freshmen McDonald and Oscar Bain at the bottom of the lineup provided the needed third and fourth points.
Bucknell also won 4-3 in 2022, with Tim Zelikovsky clinching the victory in the last match on the court at No. 4 singles.

Up Next

Bucknell will be back on the road on Saturday, Feb. 10 to face Rider at 5 p.m.
The next home match will be against Mount St. Mary's on Friday, Feb. 23 at 5 p.m.

Men's Tennis Set for Pair of Matches at Binghamton This Weekend

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Oscar Bain Moreno de Vega

Liam Kilmer

Brendan McDonald

Nick Mueller

Michael Owen

Will Robinson

Adam Stavrakas

Amar Tahirovic

Tim Zelikovsky

Men's Tennis Set for Pair of Matches at Binghamton This Weekend

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Oscar Bain Moreno de Vega

Liam Kilmer

Brendan McDonald

Nick Mueller

Michael Owen

Will Robinson

Adam Stavrakas

Amar Tahirovic

Tim Zelikovsky

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