LYNCHBURG, VA – The Randolph College men's tennis team was forced to play without its top player in Daniil Lyalko (Reisterstown, MD/Park School of Baltimore) Wednesday, falling to Greensboro College 5-4 in non-conference play from the Randolph Tennis Courts.

                Lyalko missed the match on Wednesday due to sickness, and his status for tomorrow's match is uncertain. The WildCats (4-10) earned one of the three points in doubles competition, as Mitch Franko (Jim Thorpe, PA/Jim Thorpe) and Dan Phung (Hanoi, Vietnam) teamed together to earn a win at No. 1 doubles. The victory was the first win of the season for the pairing.

                Randolph battled hard in singles play, and had a great chance to take the match. First-year Shaun Chopp (Williamsburg, VA/Hampton Roads Academy) won his match in thrilling fashion, taking the super tiebreaker 10-8 to earn a victory at No. 3 singles. It was Chopp's fifth win of the year, and he upped his record to 2-2 at No. 3 singles this year.

                No. 5 singles went to the WildCats as well, as rookie Zach Dales (Albuquerque, NM/Albuquerque) won the first set 6-2, fell in set two 0-6 but rebounded in the tiebreaker to win the match 10-7. Dales is now 7-9 on the season, one short of the team lead in wins.

                First-year Hart Gillespie (Hurt, VA/Altavista) battled for his second win of the season at No. 6 singles, rebounding from a first set loss to rally for a 2-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-8) win. It came down to a tough match at No. 4 singles, where Phung won the first set 6-1 but couldn't capture the second set or tiebreaker, giving Greensboro the 5-4 win.

                Randolph will look to rebound from today's loss tomorrow afternoon in a home Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) match with Randolph-Macon College.

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