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LVC Deals Messiah Stiff Test, But Falcons Survive 5-4
Posted: 4/16/2009
Box Score | More Men's Tennis news
Junior Luke Ruch's three-set win at the number three singles position proved to be the difference Thursday.

Grantham, PA — If it gets any closer than this, Messiah head men’s tennis coach Sheila Bush would rather not experience it.

Messiah kept a four-year regular-season undefeated streak in tact within conference play Thursday afternoon, hanging on to defeat visiting Lebanon Valley College by a 5-4 score at the Messiah College Tennis Complex.

Junior Luke Ruch defeated LVC’s Tom Neckelmann in a 7-5, 1-6, 6-4 decision at the number three singles flight to break a 4-4 team deadlock — bringing all the attention to the final match taking place on the courts late Thursday afternoon.

With the win, Messiah moves to 8-6 on the year and 4-0 in the MAC Commonwealth Conference, as league co-leader — and fellow unbeaten — Elizabethtown College arrives to Messiah Saturday afternoon.

“This match was so close,” Bush said after Thursday’s thriller. “We were fortunate that Luke got the winning (team) point in a match that could have gone either way. It was just a back-and-forth match all day long.”

Messiah took a slight advantage following doubles’ action, as only the Falcons’ number three tandem of freshmen Andrew Wismer and Adam Sheir fell to their Lebanon Valley (7-7, 2-2) counterparts. The Dutchmen’s Neckelmann and Brad Sweigart handed Wismer and Sheir an 8-3 loss in that flight, while senior Sam Shorts and sophomore Jansen Hein cruised at number one (8-6) while Ruch and freshman Mike Elliott slipped past LVC’s Matt Grodzinski and Andrew Levin at number two (8-6).

It was not until an LVC sweep of singles four through six that things got really interesting, as Sheir (at number six) and Wismer (at number five) both lost in three sets. The Dutchmen’s Sweigart handed Elliott a 6-2, 6-1 defeat, while Jansen (a 6-2, 6-1 win at number one singles) and Shorts (a gritty 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 victory at number two) kept Messiah ahead.

It all came down to the third singles position, however, and Ruch responded with his fourth straight victory in the flight. A 7-5 decision in the first set was followed by a 1-6 loss in the second, setting up a gut-wrenching third and final set with the remainder of the teams looking on.

Ruch was able to come away with a crucial 6-4 decision, moving the Hatfield, Pa. native to 2-1 in three-set singles matches this year.

“After the second set, Luke could have really gotten down on himself,” Bush said. “Instead, he came back and really competed. With so much riding on (his performance), it was really impressive.”

With the team win, Messiah pushed its regular-season conference winning streak to 21 matches. The last time the Falcons lost in regular-season league play was in a 3-4 decision to Elizabethtown on April 19, 2005.

Ironically, it is E’Town that will visit the Messiah College Tennis Complex next, as the Blue Jays face Messiah just a day short of the four-year anniversary of the aforementioned defeat Saturday. Match time is set for 1 p.m.