POMFRET, Conn. (March 8, 2020) – It was a clean sweep on Sunday for the Franklin Pierce University men's tennis team, as the Ravens went on the road and took care of Nichols, 7-0, in a non-conference match contested at the Pomfret School.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 5-5, while Nichols falls to 1-2.

The Ravens opened play by taking wins at all three doubles matches to pick up the doubles point. Senior Yuval Barak (Zicron Ya'akov, Israel) and sophomore Preston Gordon (Essex Junction, Vt.) started things with a 6-3 win at first doubles, over Nichols seniors Brandon Howard and Guilherme Barbosa. Junior Nkrumah Patrick (Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago) and freshman Alejandro Ortiz (Madrid, Spain) followed up with a 6-3 win of their own at second doubles, against senior Peter Coletti and freshman Kerem Subasi. Freshmen Joel Cladera (Palma de Mallorca, Spain) and Joshua Arnold (Scarborough, Trinidad and Tobago) rounded out doubles play with a 6-4 win over freshman Jason Lee and junior Sam Kluger.

Franklin Pierce rolled in singles play as well, as the Ravens did not drop a set across the six singles contests on the way to completing the 7-0 sweep. First singles and second singles were decided by identical scores of 6-3, 7-6, with Gordon trumping Howard at first singles and Barak going past Barbosa at second singles. At third singles, it was a 6-2, 6-4 win for Patrick over Coletti. At fourth singles, Cladera took care of Lee, 6-0, 7-5. At fifth singles, it was a 6-4, 6-4 victory for Arnold against Subasi. In the pro set format at sixth singles, Ortiz routed senior Jack Donaldson, 8-1.

The Ravens return to the court on Saturday, March 14, when they will play a pair of non-conference matches in Maine. Franklin Pierce will visit Colby at 1 p.m. and Thomas at 4 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (https://www.fpuravens.com). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce tennis apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (https://www.shopfpuravens.com).