JACKSONVILLE, Ill. - Western Illinois men's tennis picks up the first win of the regular season 7-0 over the Blueboys of Illinois College on Wednesday (Feb. 15). The Leathernecks' record stands at 1-3 following the match, while Illinois College falls to 0-2.

"It was good to get our first win of the season," head coach Chris Kane said. "We played a very business-like match, never letting our opponents get into it.

The Leathernecks won in straight sets accross the board in singles and doubles. Patrick Hammers at No. 1 singles, Ben Yue at No. 2 singles and Jim Capalbo at No. 3 singles each held their respective opponents scoreless earning dominant wins (6-0, 6-0).

Three members of the team tallied the first wins of their Leatherneck career. Andrew Yopp was victorious at No. 4 singles (6-1, 6-0), Daniel Sweeney got the best of his No. 5 singles opponent (6-3, 6-0) and Justin Liss earned the No. 6 singles win via the shut out (6-0, 6-0).

In doubles action, Western Illinois duos held their opponents to just two points overall. The No. 1 pair of Hammers and Yue and No. 2 duo of Capalbo and Yopp each took wins 8-1, while the No. 3 team of Sweeney and Liss held their opponents scoreless 8-0.

"Patrick Hammers and Ben Yue both raised their singles records to 2-2 on the year," Kane added. "Jim Capalbo served great and dominated both his singles and doubles matches. It was really pleasing to see our newcomers Andrew Yopp, Daniel Sweeney and Justin Liss record their first wins. Our team has been decimated by injuries and illness resulting in four of our six starters being lost for the season. Despite those setbacks, our remaining players have played a very high level of tennis this season. I'm really proud of them and appreciate their tenacity on the court every match."

Western Illinois is back on the court on Saturday (Feb. 18) at Marquette. The match in Milwaukee, Wis. is slated to begin at 2 p.m.

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