The Purple and Gold Wins Final Match of Spring Break Trip

HILTON HEAD, S.C. – The Yellow Jacket men's tennis team wrapped up its stay in South Carolina on Friday at the Spring Break Tennis Fest with matches against Marietta and Salve Regina. The team went 1-1 on the day, defeating Salve Regina 5-4 and losing to Marietta 8-1.

The Purple and Gold's win over Salve Regina came in thrilling fashion. Ryan Nelson and Cord Speelman teamed up to comfortably win their match at the one doubles position by a score of 8-2. The number two and three doubles team each lost their matches, putting DC down 2-1 heading into singles play.

The Yellow Jackets received straight-set victories from Speelman at two singles, Craig Bills at three singles and Justin Walker at the four spot to put the Jackets within one win of clinching the match. Number five and six singles both lost, meaning the match came down to Nelson at the one singles position.

The sophomore dropped the first set by a score of 6-1 before rallying back to win the second 6-3. The match would be decided by a super tiebreak being played in place of the third set. Nelson dominated the tiebreaker and won by a final of 10-4 to deliver Defiance the victory over the Seahawks by a score of 5-4.

Earlier in the day the Yellow Jackets faced Marietta in the morning session. The Jackets were outplayed by the Pioneers, as Marietta won the match 8-1. The lone DC victory came from the two doubles tandem of Nelson and Bills with a score of 9-7.

With the split, the Jackets record moves to 2-6 on the season. Defiance returns home to host the DC Spring Tourney on Saturday, March 23. The matches will be played at the Dix Tennis Facility.