Bristol, Tenn. – King University tennis returned home for a non-conference clash against Salem University, where the Tornado men controlled play throughout, while the women battled in a narrow loss.
Men:
On the men's side, King set the tone early by sweeping all three doubles matches to secure the doubles point. The pairs of
Lucas Machado/
Danny Neleman,
Rohan Chalisgaonkar/
Bar Meshel, and
Ben Jones/
Maximillian Kellner each earned victories to give the Tornado momentum heading into singles play.
King continued its strong performance in singles, claiming five of six matches.
Danny Neleman led the way at No. 1 with a convincing 6-2, 6-2 win, while
Bar Meshel followed with a 6-1, 6-4 victory at No. 2.
Lucas Machado delivered a dominant performance at No. 3, winning 6-4, 6-0, and
Beckham Sylvester battled to straight sets win at No. 4, including a tiebreak in the opening set.
Rohan Chalisgaonkar added another point with a 6-4, 6-1 win at No. 5. Salem's lone point came at No. 6 singles.
Singles competition
- Danny Neleman (King) vs Simon Braeuning (SU) King: 2-0 (6-2, 6-2)
- Bar Meshel (King) vs Stefan Schultz (SU) King: 2-0 (6-1, 6-4)
- Lucas Machado (King) vs Mika Rodermond (SU) King: 2-0 (6-4, 6-0)
- Beckham Sylvester (King) vs Mahavir Modi (SU) King: 2-0 (7-6, 6-3)
- Rohan Chalisgaonkar (King) vs Jose Cabo (SU) King: 2-0 (6-4, 6-1)
- Ben Jones (King) vs Jack Taggert (SU) SU: 2-0 (6-2, 6-2)
Doubles competition
- Machado/Neleman (King) vs Wessel/Schultz (SU) King: 6-4
- Chalisgaonkar/Meshel (King) vs Cobo/Braeuning (SU) King: 7-6
- Jones/Kellner (King) vs Rodermond/Lantu (SU) King: 6-4
Women:
The women's match came down to the wire, with Salem narrowly defeating King 4-3. After dropping the doubles point, King needed a strong singles showing and nearly completed the comeback.
Rani Malhoe put King on the board with a solid 6-4, 6-0 win at No. 1 singles.
Shellby Tranchita followed with an impressive three-set victory at No. 2, bouncing back after dropping the first set to win in a match tiebreak. However, Salem claimed the remaining singles matches, including a default at No. 6, to secure the team win.
Despite the loss, the Tornado showed resilience in singles play after falling behind early, highlighted by strong performances at the top of the lineup.
Singles competition
- Rani Malhoe (King) vs Daria Korsakova (SU) King: 2-0 (6-4, 6-0)
- Shellby Tranchita (King) vs Aishwarya Prasad Kailaje (SU) King: 2-1 (3-6, 6-1, 10-2)
- Trinity Moore (King) vs Galia Menouar (SU) SU: 2-0 (6-1, 6-2)
- Ruth Robison (King) vs Ekaterina Korsakova (SU) SU: 2-0 (6-2, 6-0)
- Sarah Hale (King) vs Salome Molina (SU) SU: 2-0 (6-2, 6-1)
- Lilly Belcher (King) vs Karen Arellano (SU) SU: Default
Doubles competition
- Malhoe/Robison (King) vs D. Korsakova/E. Korsakova (SU) SU: 6-2
- Tranchita/Blecher (King) vs Molina/Kailaje (SU) SU: 6-3
- Moore/Hale (King) vs Arellano/Menouar (SU) King: 6-4
Up Next: King returns to Conference Carolinas action on Tuesday, April 7, hosting Lees-McRae College.
