(Kingsborough, NY) Men's Tennis kicked off the 2018 season with their first match against Kingsborough Community College last Saturday. With typical March type weather, the Lions battled through the windy conditions to take on The Wave.

Playing first singles, Angel Lupo fought a tough match against Kingsborough's top player. Lupo was ahead by a break point in the first match. He lost the point and the game went to a tie breaker where Lupo couldn't capture the win, finishing 6-7. Lupo stayed aggressive as they moved on to the second set, but fell behind again. Despite being behind, he continued to be assertive in net play and never gave up on the game. Kingsborough took the win, 2-6.

In second singles, Matthew Kolkhorst, team co-captain, took control from the first stroke. He put away his opponent 6-1, 6-0. As for third singles, the other co-captain and veteran returnee, Akbar Hasan, also came out victorious, winning handily 6-1, 6-0.

Newcomer Jack Chen also competed in singles. His precise shots helped him gain the W, 6-1, 6-3. Sean Althaus kept his opponent scoreless for the entire match, winning 6-0, 6-0. Brett Cohn wrapped up the singles matches for the Lions. He came out strong winning the first game 6-0, but faltered a bit in the second as the Kingsborough player made a comeback. Cohn went up 6-5 and found himself in a 6-6 tie breaker. Cohn kept his composure and came out on top to win the tie breaker 7-6.

Moving on to doubles, Angel Lupo and Matthew Kolkhorst paired for the perfect duo. They played to each others strengths and weakness and shut down The Wave, 8-0.

Second doubles were Akbar Hasan and Jack Chen. The pair gelled together nicely defeating their opponents 8-1, 8-1. Sean Althaus and Brett Cohn went 8-2, 8-2 to the final win for the Lions.

Overall the men won, 8-1. Head Coach Laura Gilbert commented after the matches, "We have a solid group of young men here this year, and you can tell by this first meet how hard they worked in the off season. We have a very cohesive and determined group that are aiming to get back to Nationals again this year."

The Lions will hit the road again on Friday to face Suffolk Community College on their own turf.