McMINNVILLE, Ore. – The Whitman College men's tennis team rolled to a 7-0 sweep of Linfield in Northwest Conference play Saturday afternoon at Rutschman Field House, turning in a wire-to-wire dominant performance to stay unbeaten in league action.
Whitman (2-1, 2-0 NWC) took immediate control in doubles, racing through all three courts to secure the opening point. At the top spot, Artem Manov and Charles Rush set the tone with a 6-3 win over Brooks Lerfald and Zac Nakajima, before Alexander Stage and Niklas Jensen backed it up with a 6-2 victory against Joey Henderson and Cameron Paulsen at No. 2. Guillermo Rodriguez and Hanri Luo finished off the sweep with a 6-3 decision over Alexander Rosenquist and Nick Owens on court three.
With a 1-0 cushion, the Blues never let up in singles. Stage was first off court, producing a clinical 6-1, 6-2 result against Lerfald at No. 1. Rodriguez added another straight-set win at No. 4, dispatching Paulsen 6-2, 6-1, while Charles Boyden powered past Rosenquist 6-3, 6-3 on court five.
Luo kept the momentum rolling at No. 6, posting a steady 6-1, 6-4 win over Gavin Orozco to lock up the team victory.
Jensen had Whitman in full command at No. 2 before Nakajima was forced to retire with the score 3-3 in the opening set. Manov capped the sweep with the lone three-setter of the day at No. 3, outlasting Henderson 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 to make it a clean 7-0 final.
The Blues are back at it on Sunday at Pacific. Match time is set for 11:00 a.m.
