Agate

BUIES CREEK, N.C. – The Elon University men’s tennis team won its first dual meet of the 2013 season on Thursday, Jan. 31, after grinding out a 4-3 road win over Campbell at the James Nisbet Tennis Center.

"I'm proud of the way we battled today and how the bottom of our lineup really stepped up," said Phoenix head coach Michael Leonard. "A match like today may have gone the other way last year, but our guys really competed hard and showed incredible strength and leadership when we needed it."
 
The Phoenix won the doubles point by sweeping all three matches, including at No. 1 where 22nd-ranked Cameron Silverman and Stefan Fortmann came up with an 8-2 decision over Josep Baro and Rick Van Gerwen.
 
Fortmann gave the maroon and gold a 2-0 edge after finishing first in singles, as the reigning Southern Conference Freshman of the Year registered a 6-2, 6-1, win in straight sets versus Steve Billington at the No. 2 position.
 
Juan Madrid came up with a key point for the Phoenix at No. 6 singles, topping Van Gerwen in two sets, 7-5, 6-3, to give Elon a 3-0 lead.
 
Jordan Kaufman won a three-set thriller at No. 5 singles against Campbell’s Josep Baro to clinch the match. After splitting the first two sets against Baro, 6-4, 4-6, Kaufman dominated the third set and closed on the match in impressive fashion with a 6-1 decision.
 
Silverman, ranked 21st in the country in singles, dropped a tough match at No. 1 to Campbell’s Fernando Guillen in three sets, falling 4-6, 6-3, 5-7.
 
Elon returns to action on Feb. 8 at NC State.