Ewing, NJ…In a regional showdown of two regionally ranked men’s tennis teams, The College of New Jersey Lions pulled off a 6-3 win over the Bobcats of Bates College on Tuesday afternoon at TCNJ’s Student Recreation Center. Ranked No. 10 regionally in the Northeast Region, the Lions triumphed over the No. 7 ranked Bobcats to improve to 10-1 this season, while Bates drops to 4-5.

Bates College vs The College of New Jersey Apr 17, 2007 at TCNJ
#10 The College of New Jersey 6, #7 Bates College 3
Singles competition
1. Benjamin Stein (BATES) def. Michael Klimchak (TCNJ) 4-6, 6-2, 7-6
2. Roger Mosteller (TCNJ) def. Amrit Rupasinghe (BATES) 6-2, 6-3
3. Eric Ferriere (TCNJ) def. Maxwell Berger (BATES) 7-6, 6-4
4. Corey Ball (TCNJ) def. Danillo Acosta (BATES) 6-2, 6-4
5. Zach Fenno (BATES) vs. Jeremy Eckardt (TCNJ) 6-4, 7-6 (4)
6. Sonnie Pollosco (TCNJ) def. Michael Sherman (BATES), 6-2, 6-2

Doubles competition
1. Michael Klimchak/Roger Mosteller (TCNJ) def. Ben Stein/Maxwell Berger (BATES) 8-3
2. Eric Ferriere/Corey Ball (TCNJ) def. Amrit Rupasinghe/Ryan Mannelly (BATES) 8-2
3. Danillo Acosta/Adam Nielson (BATES) def. Jeremy Eckardt/James Vance (TCNJ) 8-3

Match Notes: Bates College 4-5; National ranking #7; Regional ranking #7
The College of New Jersey 10-1; National ranking #10; Regional ranking #10
Official: Marvin Hill

At first singles, Bates College’s sophomore Benjamin Stein (Pelham, NY/Pelham) bested TCNJ’s junior Michael Klimchak (Clark, NJ/Arthur L. Johnson) in three sets. Klimchak who was ranked No. 15 in the last ITA National Poll, and currently ranks No. 9 in the newest Northeast Regional Poll, drops to 15-3 overall and 9-2 in dual meet action this season and 55-11 on his career.

At second singles, TCNJ’s junior Roger Mosteller (Medford Lakes, NJ/Shawnee) was victorious as he bested freshman Amrit Rupasinghe (Colombo, Sri Lanka), 6-2, 6-3 for his 14th win of the year (14-3) while standing at 9-1 in dual singles play this season.

Ranked No. 4 in the newest ITA Northeast Doubles poll, TCNJ’s top pair of Klimchak and Mosteller bested the No. 6 ranked pair from Bates’, Stein and freshman Maxwell Berger (Concord, NH/Concord), 8-3. The pair from TCNJ is now 17-2 overall and 11-0 in dual meet competition this season, while holding a two-year record of 32-5 together, including a perfect 20-0 in dual action.

On a day when the Lions honored their lone senior in conjunction with Senior Day, TCNJ’s senior Corey Ball (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern) triumphed at No. 4 singles over junior Danillo Acosta (Quito, Ecuador), 6-4, 6-2. Ball now stands at 15-4 on the season in singles play and is now 63-18 on his career. He teamed at No. 2 doubles with junior Eric Ferriere (Branchville, NJ/Kittatiny) for a win to improve to 15-3 together. Overall on his career, Ball has combined for a 123-38 record on the courts over the last four years in singles and doubles action, while helping the Lions produce a combined team record of 38-14 during that same time frame.

For the Lions, Ferriere was also winner at No. 3 singles over Berger and now stands at 17-3 this year.
Freshman Zach Fenno (Armonk, NY/The Masters School) handed TCNJ’s rookie Jeremy Eckardt (Belle Mead, NJ/Montgomery) his first dual loss of the year at fifth singles as he was a 6-4, 7-6(4) winner to put Eckardt at 9-1 in dual play this season and 16-3 overall.

TCNJ’s junior Sonnie Pollosco (Stratford, NJ/Sterling) was a 6-2, 6-2 winner at No. 6 singles over Bates’ sophomore Michael Sherman (Huntington, NY/Huntington) and is now 2-0 in limited singles play for the Lions.

TCNJ returns to action on April 22 when they travel to Johns Hopkins University for a 1:00 p.m. match with the Blue Jays, while Bates will travel to Swarthmore College on April 19 for a 4:00 p.m. match.