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York Ends Messiah Home Streak On Cold, Blustery Afternoon
Senior Sam Shorts teamed with sophomore Jansen Hein to provide Messiah's only point against York.
Grantham, PA — Perhaps the weather was an ominous precursor of things to come. Messiah dropped an 8-1 decision to York College Monday afternoon, the program’s first home loss in its last 17 matches — a streak that dated back to the 2005 season. As temperatures hovered in the low 40’s with shivering winds whipping across the courts under a gloomy cloud cover, it was a day that all in the Falcons’ tennis family would like to soon forget. “Not the best day to be out here playing tennis,” said Sheila Bush, Messiah head coach. “York is a very experienced team and we are young. They took it to us today.” Perhaps fittingly, it was Messiah’s lone senior that helped to the Falcons’ lone point of the day, teaming with sophomore Jansen Hein at the number one doubles position for an 8-3 win over York’s Tim Mowrer and Joel Trimmer. Messiah’s other two doubles tandems could only come up with two games won collectively — both came from junior Luke Ruch and freshman Mike Elliott at the second flight — and the hosts went into singles play down by a 2-1 score. As the winds intensified — making for almost comical tennis at moments — York (5-7) proved to simply be too much. Straight-set wins at the number one, three and six singles positions guaranteed the Spartans’ team win, while the visitors needed to exert extra effort against Shorts (at number two) and freshman Andrew Wismer (at number five) to claim three-set wins. Shorts took York’s Trimmer to a 4-6, 6-4 split before falling in the final set by the same score, while Wismer responded from a 6-1 opening-set loss to pull back with a 6-3 win in the second. York’s Jeff Mansfield was able to get back on the wind-aided side for a dominant, 6-1 victory. The defeat was Messiah’s first at the Messiah College Tennis Complex since a 3-4 defeat to MAC Commonwealth rival Elizabethtown College back on April 19, 2005. “We’ve got to bounce back quickly, as we understand that conference matches are the most important,” Bush said. Messiah (3-5) will open its league schedule in less than 24 hours, traveling to Lycoming College tomorrow. Match time is slated for 3:30 p.m.
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