Winter Park, Fla. – Lynn University's eighth-ranked men's tennis team continued its dominance over the Eckerd College Tritons with a 6-0 victory on Thursday in the opening round of the Sunshine State Conference Tournament .The Fighting Knights are in familiar territory as they have made it to the semifinals of the championships every season since SSC play began in 1998. Lynn's record improves to 14-5 on the season as head coach Mike Perez picks up win number 405 for his career with the men's team.
In doubles action Lynn handled Eckerd (4-12) to take the early 3-0 lead. Thomas Porkop and Alessio Iannozzi defeated their Triton counterparts at the No. 3, 8-1, with the victory they pick up their 13th win of the season together. Vlad Cirla and Pavel Mojha were the second team to finish when they defeated Nikita Valuiskikh and Stephen Felman, 8-2, at No. 2 doubles. Daniel Riggs and Paolo Volpicelli concluded the first phase of the contest with an 8-1 victory overpowering of Eckerds top pair. The Fighting Knights are 40-17 in doubles play this season.
With only two victories away from advancing, the middle of Lynn's singles lineup produced wins to end the contest. Mojha was the first to finish, remaining undefeated with a 6-2, 6-0, victory at the four spot over Felman. No. 3 and No. 5 singles finished at identical times to give the Fighting Knights the 6-0 final score. 37th-ranked Porkop won 6-2, 6-1, at No. 3 while Volpicelli earned his 10th singles win with a 6-0, 6-1, score final in the fifth spot. Porkop's win ties him with Iannozzi to lead the team in singles victories this season with 13.
Wins aren't rare at the Sunshine State Conference Tournament for the Fighting Knights, as the team picked up its 28th win in the SSC's postseason. The Blue & White has won four SSC Tournament titles in program history.
Lynn is scheduled to play Rollins in the semifinals at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, April 25. Fans can follow the action at LynnFightingKnights.com and receive updates by following @LUKnights on Twitter and Instagram.
