ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College men's tennis team continues its spring schedule this afternoon with a 4:00 p.m. non-conference match against SUNY Oneonta. Today's contest is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at the Murray Athletic Center Tennis Dome.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Elmira came out on the wrong end of a 6-3 decision in its most recent match to NCAA Division II affiliate Salem International. The Tigers of Salem swept the doubles matches, earning an 8-3 win at first doubles and a pair of 8-6 victories at the second and third positions, to head into the singles portion of the contest with a 3-0 lead. Elmira answered with back-to-back singles wins from Anthony Colavito '20 and Chris Konow '18 at the second and third positions, respectively. Colavito pulled out a tight three-setter at the second spot, winning the deciding third set in a 10-point super tiebreaker, 7-5, 4-6, 1-0 (10-8). Konow downed his opponent in two grueling sets, edging his counterpart by a single break in each set, 6-4, 7-5. Following the two EC wins, Salem earned another point with a straight set win at the top singles spot to push its lead to 4-2. However, Elmira's Jordan Curtis '19 pulled the Purple and Gold back to within one point, 4-3, with a routine 6-2, 6-0 win at the sixth spot. Unfortunately for the Soaring Eagles, this was as close as they would get, as the Tigers marched away with a 6-3 win in EC's spring opener.
 
CAREER-FIRST FOR COLAVITO: Freshman Anthony Colavito '20 picked up his first collegiate singles victory in Elmira's 6-3 setback to Salem International. Colavito became the first EC freshman to earn a win at the No. 2 spot or higher since former Empire 8 All-Conference honoree Pavle Vashakidze '16 earned a straight-set win at the No. 1 spot in his second career match with the Purple and Gold during the fall portion of the 2012-13 season. 
 
DOUBLES IMPORTANCE: Elmira dropped all three doubles matches last time out to Salem International en route its second loss of the season. EC went 0-7 last season when swept in doubles action and went 9-3 when winning at least one doubles match.
 
SCOUTING THE RED DRAGONS: SUNY Oneonta heads into today's matchup with plenty of match experience under its belt, as the Red Dragons are 1-2 on the season with three non-scoring tournaments to go along with it. Oneonta's lone victory was a 7-2 defeat of Baruch back in early October, while the team's two losses have come against NESCAC foe Hamilton (7-2) and MAC Freedom powerhouse Wilkes (5-4). This evening's tilt with the Purple and Gold will be Oneonta's first match of the spring and marks the beginning of a 10-match road tour that will take the Red Dragons to four different states outside of New York (New Jersey, Maryland, Ohio and Massachusetts). Michael Nelson is back for his senior season, after holding down the top singles and doubles positions a year ago. Nelson went 27-10 in all matches a season ago (13-5 singles; 14-5 doubles) and enters tonight with an even 3-3 record in singles action this season. Also keep an eye on Zach Lasky, who is riding a four-match singles win streak and was unbeaten in dual-matches this past fall.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Today's clash between the Soaring Eagles and the Red Dragons will be the eighth all-time meeting between the two programs. Elmira is still searching for its first win in the series, as Oneonta boasts a flawless 7-0 all-time record. Today's contest will also be the first meeting between the two programs since Elmira's 2012 season opener.
 
UP NEXT: Elmira will enjoy a two-week break from competition, before taking on the Lakers of Oswego State on Saturday, March 4th. The match is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. at EC's Murray Athletic Center.