FLUSHING, NY – In its fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, the Monmouth University men's tennis team was defeated by #34 Penn State in the first round, 4-0.
 
At No. 1 doubles, senior Nicola Pipoli and sophomore Will Cooke Wharton took an early lead over #45 duo Constant De La Basse/Gabriel Nemeth, but later fell behind 5-3 before the match was unfinished. The Nittany Lions took wins at No. 2 and No. 3 to secure the doubles point.
 
 In singles play, Penn State's Ben Lieb defeated Monmouth's Sergio Martinez at No. 5, 6-1, 6-1. Pipoli fell to #105 Christian Lakoseljac at No. 2 singles, 6-3, 6-2. At No. 1 singles, Penn State clinched the win as #29 De La Basse defeated Srdjan Jakovljevic, 6-1, 6-2.
 
Junior Max Benaim won his first set at No. 3 singles, 7-5, before the match was unfinished. At No. 4 singles, Cooke Wharton won his first set, 6-3, before the match was unfinished.
 
NUMBERS CRUNCH
#34 Penn State 4, Monmouth 0
5/3/2019 at Flushing, NY
Singles competition
1. #29 Constant De La Basse (PSU) def. Jakovljevic, Srdjan (MU-M) 6-1, 6-2
2. #105 Christian Lakoseljac (PSU) def. Pipoli, Nicola (MU-M) 6-3, 6-2
3. Gabriel Nemeth (PSU) vs. Benaim, Max (MU-M) 5-7, 2-1, unfinished
4. Christos Antonopoulo (PSU) vs. Cooke Wharton, Will (MU-M) 3-6, 3-3, unfinished
5. Ben Lieb (PSU) def. Martinez, Sergio (MU-M) 6-1, 6-1
6. Alp Sentay (PSU) vs. Giuffrida, Alberto (MU-M) 6-3, 5-0, unfinished
 
Doubles competition
1. #45 Constant De La Basse/Gabriel Nemeth (PSU) vs. Cooke Wharton, Will/Pipoli, Nicola (MU-M) 5-3, unfinished
2. Christian Lakoseljac/Christos Antonopoulo (PSU) def. Martinez, Sergio/Benaim, Max (MU-M) 6-1
3. Ben Lieb/Matt Galush (PSU) def. Giuffrida, Alberto/Jakovljevic, Srdjan (MU-M) 6-2
 
Match Notes
Monmouth 18-2
Penn State 20-8; National ranking #34
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (5,2,1)
 
UP NEXT
Monmouth ends the season with an 18-2 overall record, including its fourth-straight MAAC Tournament Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance.