Men's Tennis | 3/18/2013 4:48:00 PM
Skillman, NJ. – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association released its second individual ranking of the season on March 13, 2013. The Bulldog’s individual rankings have risen nationally and regionally. Nationally, sophomore and Bulldog top player Rafael Bulnes (Rosmalen, Netherlands) jumped from No. 43 nationally to No. 20 in singles.
“It’s a pretty remarkable leap for Rafael who has played some great tennis thus far this season,” said head coach Jeff Benito.
Also, senior Slav Bukatin (Moscow, Russia) and junior Sean Dullaghan (Los Angeles, Calif.) cracked the national ranking for the first time making an appearance at No. 24 in doubles. The ‘Dogs are still holding strong at No. 19 as a team by the NAIA.
In the Central Region, the Bulldog’s have really made their mark. Bulnes jumped from No. 8 in the Central Region in singles to No. 2. Bukatin and Torsten Keil-Long (Claremont, Calif.) come in ranked No. 15 and No. 19, respectively. All three Mac tennis double teams are represented in the Central Region double’s rankings. Bukatin and partner Dullaghan are ranked No. 4; junior Mark Mahan (Fullerton, Calif.) and partner Keil-Long are ranked No. 8; and finally junior Sean De Young (Anaheim, Calif.) and partner Bulnes are ranked No. 10.
“We struggled with our doubles early in the season, but I believe now that we have been able to work out some of the kinks and are playing excellent doubles,” commented Benito.
The Bulldogs are now preparing to head to Southern California for Spring Break. The trip will be quite tough as McPherson College open’s up at No. 3 Vanguard University on Saturday, March 23 at 11:00am and then travel to Pasadena, CA to play NCAA Division III opponent Pacific Lutheran at the campus of California Institute of Technology. The remainder of the trip includes NCAA Division II opponent Pt. Loma Nazarene, No. 8 Concordia University, RV Hope International University and Biola University; all of the very strong Golden State Athletic Conference.
The Bulldogs also went 4-0 over their last four matches with dropping at most one point to their competition. The Bulldogs defeated Hesston College 8-1, Seward County Community College 9-0, John Brown University 5-1, and Hastings College 9-0.
Final Scores:
McPherson College 8, Hesston College 1
Doubles:
1) De Young/Bulnes (Mac) def. Oyer/Ramirez (HC) 8-2
2) Bukatin/Dullaghan (Mac) def. Ermoian/Hostetler (HC) 8-3
3) Mahan/Keil-Long (Mac) def. Jensen/Murray (HC) 8-0
Singles:
1) Rafael Bulnes (Mac) def. Luis Ramirez (HC) 6-1, 6-1
2) Michael Oyer (HC) def. Slav Bukatin (Mac) 7-5, 7-6
3) Mark Mahan (Mac) def. Keenan Jensen (HC) 6-0, 6-0
4) Sean Dullaghan (Mac) def. Taylor Ermoian (HC) 6-2, 6-0
5) Adolfo Serafin (Mac) def. Drew Hostetler (HC) 6-1, 6-1
6) Michael Irwin (Mac) def. Dominic Murray (HC) 6-1, 6-4
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McPherson College 9, Seward County College 0
Doubles:
1) Mahan/Keil-Long (Mac) def. Pena/Robertson (SCCC) 8-2
2) Dullaghan/Bukatin (Mac) def. Penna/Alonte (SCCC) 8-3
3) Michael Irwin/Ronaldo Filho (Mac) won by Default
Singles:
1) Rafael Bulnes (Mac) def. Justin Pena (SCCC) 6-1, 6-1
2) Slav Bukatin (Mac) def. Donnerson Penna (SCCC) 7-6, 6-4
3) Mark Mahan (Mac) def. Daniel Alonte (SCCC) 6-3, 6-4
4) Torsten Keil-Long (Mac) def. Luke Robertson (SCCC) 6-2, 6-4
5) Michael Irwin (Mac) def. Josh Hamilton (SCCC) 8-1
6) Alex Cosneza (Mac) won by Default
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McPherson College 5, John Brown University 1
Doubles:
1) Mahan/Keil-Long (Mac) def. McLendon/Pascoe (JBU) 8-1
2) Bukatin/Dullaghan (Mac) def. Baker/Laney (JBU) 8-0
3) Bulnes/Filho (Mac) def. Zoellner/Cheek (JBU) 8-0
Singles:
1) Rafael Bulnes (Mac) def. Cameron McLendon (JBU) 6-0, 6-0
2) Slav Bukatin (Mac) vs. Alex Baker (JBU) DNP
3) Torsten Keil-Long (Mac) def. Brandon Laney (JBU) 6-0, 6-1
4) Sean Dullaghan (Mac) vs. Seongjae Jo (JBU) DNP
5) Ronaldo Filho (Mac) vs. Blake Zoellner (JBU) DNP
6) Colton Cheek (JBU) def. Alex Cosenza (Mac) 6-4, 6-0
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McPherson College 9, Hastings College 0
Doubles:
1) Mahan/Keil-Long (Mac) def. Inman/Bachle (HC) 8-3
2) Bulnes/De Young (Mac) def. Ritzdorf/Matneny (HC) 8-3
3) Bukatin/Serafin (Mac) def. Mertens/LeLand Denter (HC) 8-2
Singles:
1) Rafael Bulnes (Mac) def. McKay Inman (HC) 6-3, 6-2
2) Slav Bukatin (Mac) def. Seton Bachle (HC) 6-4, 6-2
3) Mark Mahan (Mac) def. Isaac Mertens (HC) 6-0, 6-2
4) Torsten Keil-Long (Mac) def. Joe Ritzdorf (HC) 6-0, 6-3
5) Sean De Young (Mac) def. Kolby Martneny (HC) 6-0, 6-2
6) Adolfo Serafin (Mac) def. Joe Bliven (HC) 6-1, 6-0
