NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Victories at the fifth and sixth singles flights wrapped up a 5-0 victory for Virginia Wesleyan College's men's tennis team in an Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) quarterfinal match against the WildCats of Randolph College on Saturday.
The victory improves VWC's record to 13-4 and moves the Marlins into the ODAC semifinal round for the third consecutive year. Virginia Wesleyan will host the men's and women's semis and championship matches on Friday, May 2, and Saturday, May 3. The Marlins will take on third-seeded Guilford College (11-4) in a semifinal showdown at a time to be announced.
Saturday's match against Randolph (8-8), originally scheduled to be played outdoors at Virginia Wesleyan's Everett Tennis Center, was moved indoors at the Center Court Racquet Club due to rainy weather in the Hampton Roads area. But, the change in venue did not hamper the Marlins, who jumped in front 3-0 with a doubles sweep, before rookie Adam Rosemblaum (Herzelya, Israel/Hayovel) and sophomore Brendan Kelleher (Baltimore, Md./Towson) iced the win with singles wins.
Rosemblaum and Kelleher were both two-time winners for the Marlins, taking solo wins after contributing to the doubles sweep. Rosemblam won 6-0, 6-2 at No. 5 singles, while Kelleher posted a 6-1, 6-1 decision at No. 6. It was Kelleher's 10th victory in 11 matches this season, while Rosemblaum improved his team-leading victories total to 12 in 15 outings.
Rosemblaum started his afternoon as part of a duo with junior standout Graham Wilson (Newport News/Menchville)at the No. 1 position. The twosome improved their season record to 5-1 with an 8-4 win over Daniil Lyalko (Reisterstown, Md./Park School of Baltimore and Dario Schiano-Moriello (Ewing, N.J./Notre Dame).
Kelleher teamed with junior Drew Tomajczyk (Chesterfield/Home schooled) for an 8-4 win at the No. 3 flight to remain undefeated at 5-0, and junior Tyler Chang (Hvre de Grace, Md./Tome School) and sophomore Kenny Downing (Washington, D.C./Home schooled) won 8-1 at No. 2. They are now 5-1 on the season.
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