ORLANDO, Fla. – The Franklin & Marshall men's tennis team kicked off its spring break trip with a 1-1 mark to move to 2-1 on the season. The Diplomats opened the week on Monday by rolling past Staten Island 9-0 followed by a 9-0 loss to Wingate in non-conference action.

Against Staten Island, William MacArthur got the match started with a straight-set (6-1, 6-1) victory at the No. 1 position. Doug Kaplan then blanked Austin Kapetanakis 6-0, 6-0 in the No. 2 spot before Joshua Kane won 6-0, 6-0 in the No. 3 position.

In the No. 4 spot, Benjamin Stern was strong in a 6-0, 6-0 decision against Chris Punto. Kazuhiro Tomioka outlasted Ed Ruffe 6-3, 7-5 in the No. 5 position, while Evan Drapeau earned a 6-1, 6-0 victory at No. 6. 

In doubles action, the Diplomats dominated as MacArthur and Nolan Bacchieri won 8-1 in the No. 1 spot. At No. 2, Kaplan and Kane defeated James Chuenpratum and Ruffe 8-2, while Stern and Tomioka blanked Kapetanakis and Jack Benjamin 8-0 at No. 3.

Against Wingate (7-4), the Bulldogs came out on top but were challenged by the Diplomats throughout the contest. In the No. 2 spot, Kaplan picked up a number of games against Sebastian Hall, but eventually fell 6-2, 6-4.

Stern took the first set against Josh Eardley in the No. 5 singles spot, but eventually fell 4-6, 6-4, 1-0.

In doubles action, MacArthur and Bacchieri fought hard from the No. 1 spot and nearly missed out on a win but fell 9-7. Kaplan and Kane also just missed a victory in the No. 2 position, but fell 8-6 to Connor Kudrick and Ryan Forbes.

F&M concludes its Florida spring break trip tomorrow with a pair of non-conferences matches when the Diplomats battle Wesleyan (Conn.) at 11:30 a.m. and Colby-Sawyer at 5:30 p.m.