A young Hillsdale men's tennis team took a huge step forward in G-MAC play on Sunday, rallying from a doubles point loss to beat Walsh 4-3 in a home match played indoors at the Biermann Athletic Center.

The victory is a huge one that keeps the Chargers unbeaten in G-MAC play at 3-0. The Cavaliers had won two straight over Hillsdale entering Sunday's match and the matches between the two squads have often loomed large when G-MAC tournament seeding is determined, as the two squads are usually close by each other in the regular season standings.

Strong performances by the top and bottom of Hillsdale's singles lineup were the key to victory. Freshman Ryan Papazov rolled to a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Walsh's Luis Hernandez at No. 1 singles, and sophomore Ellis Klanduch got a crucial, hard-fought three set victory over Ethan Milgan of Walsh, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1, at No. 2 singles.

Those two wins kept Hillsdale alive heading into the No. 5 and 6 singles matches, and the Chargers in those spots delivered dominating victories. Sam Plys rolled to a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Walsh's Kian Balali at No. 5 singles, and Eddie Bergelin clinched the victory for Hillsdale with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Walsh's Ben Hoffmann at No. 6 singles.

The Chargers overcame a tight loss in doubles to take the match. Sophomores Klanduch and Henry Hammond won a 6-4 decision at No. 1 doubles, but Walsh won 6-4 at No. 2 doubles and took a tiebreak at No. 3 doubles in a tight match to take the point and an early lead.

Hillsdale is now 9-5 overall, 3-0 in the G-MAC with today's victory, and hit the road with a huge opportunity this coming weekend. The Chargers play the two teams expected to battle for the G-MAC title, Findlay and Tiffin, back-to-back on Friday and Saturday. An upset of either or both would insert Hillsdale into the title race as well.

Photo by Vincent Hill