NEW HAVEN, Conn. - No. 7 Franklin & Marshall dropped a 9-0 decision to No. 6 Yale in the opening match of its weekend trip in New England. The Diplomats fall to 2-2 with the loss, while the Bulldogs begin the year at 1-0.
The match was much closer than the final score appears as the Diplomats posted competitive scores at nearly every position in the lineup and stretched their counterparts to at least four games at five of the nine spots.
Guilherme de Melo (No. 1) and Brian Henry (No. 9) both came close to securing wins as the duo each fell in five games.
de Melo held a 1-0 and 2-1 lead over Kenneth Chan, but Chan came through with a pair of 11-8 victories in decisive games four and five to earn the 8-11, 11-9, 7-11, 11-8, 11-8 win.
Henry found himself in a 2-0 hole against Pehlaaj Bejwa with 15-13 and 11-8 defeats in the opening two games, but bounced back with 11-6, 11-8 wins to push the match to five games. Bajwa responded, however, with an 11-8 triumph in the final game to give the Bulldogs the shutout win.
F&M is back in action tomorrow against St. Lawrence at 2:00 p.m.
#6 Yale 9, #7 Franklin & Marshall 0
| 1. Kenneth Chan (YALE) def. Guilherme de Melo (F&M) 8-11, 11-9, 7-11, 11-8, 11-8 |
| 2. Richard Dodd (YALE) def. Mauricio Sedano (F&M) 11-8, 11-7, 11-8 |
| 3. Hywel Robinson (YALE) def. Ryan Mullaney (F&M) 11-8, 9-11, 11-3, 11-7 |
| 4. Neil Martin (YALE) def. P. Veiga de Almeida (F&M) 8-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-8 |
| 5. Sam Fenwick (YALE) def. Alex Arjoon (F&M) 11-9, 11-6, 11-3 |
| 6. Zachary Leman (YALE) def. Antonio De La Torre (F&M) 11-4, 11-2, 11-5 |
| 7. Eric Caine (YALE) def. Dylan Cunningham (F&M) 11-9, 11-9, 12-10 |
| 8. Joseph Roberts (YALE) def. Jack Cutler (F&M) 11-7, 11-4, 6-11, 13-11 |
| 9. Pehlaaj Bajwa (YALE) def. Brian Henry (F&M) 15-13, 11-8, 6-11, 8-11, 11-8 |
