UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's tennis team (4-0) continues its home stand with four matches this upcoming weekend. The Nittany Lions will face Mount St. Mary's (0-0) and Drexel (2-1) in a doubleheader on Saturday at 11 a.m. ET and 3 p.m. ET, before taking on UPenn (1-2) and Villanova (0-2) on Sunday.
FOLLOW ALONG
LAST TIME OUT
The Nittany Lions earned their fourth win and second doubleheader sweep of the season on Saturday. They defeated Duquesne in a 6-1 contest, before sweeping St. Francis 7-0. Penn State improved to 4-0 for their best start to a season since the 2015-2016 campaign.
The Blue & White have been dominant throughout the start of the spring season. Boasting a 4-0 record overall, the Nittany Lions have also defeated Delaware and Georgetown and lost only three singles courts along the way. Miko Eala and Ismail Saadi are each 4-0 in singles, while Charl Morgan possesses a 3-0 record playing on courts one and two. Sam Bossem also has his own 3-0 record at No. 4.
Penn State has also been commanding in doubles action. Partners Morgan and Malik Bhatnagar are 4-0 on No. 1, while Loren Byers and Bossem hold the same record on No. 2.
SCOUTING THE MOUNT
Mount St. Mary's will open its season with a trip to Happy Valley.
The Mount is 0-2 all-time opposite the Nittany Lions. Penn State collected its latest win during the 2022 season in a 7-0 sweep with Sam Bossem, Charl Morgan, Ismail Saadi, and Harrison Janes all earning singles wins. Doubles partners Morgan and Eala also defeated the Mount's Elliot Stevens and Giovanni Abriola in a 7-6(3) contest on court one. The Nittany Lions look to secure another win over Mount St. Mary's.
PREVIEWING THE DRAGONS
Drexel is 2-1 heading into their matchup versus Penn State. Losing their season opener to Old Dominion, 6-1, the Dragons have been dominant in their last two matches. After a 6-1 win over the Villanova Wildcats last Saturday, Drexel downed St. Francis Brooklyn in a 4-0 sweep on Sunday.
This matchup marks the first time in program history that the Nittany Lions and Dragons will face off on the court.
INSIDE THE QUAKERS
UPenn comes into this Sunday matchup with a 1-2 record. The Quakers started out their season with a 6-1 victory over Old Dominion, before falling to then-No. 8 South Carolina and VCU at the ITA Kickoff Weekend. They will take on Navy at home, before traveling to University Park to face the Nittany Lions.
In nine recorded matches between Penn State and UPenn, the Quakers hold the 5-4 advantage. They came away with the most recent win in 2022 at the Hecht Tennis Center in Philadelphia. The Nittany Lions look to earn the series equalizer this weekend.
A LOOK INTO THE WILDCATS
Villanova started off their 2022 season with two away matches against Drexel and Delaware. The Wildcats lost both 6-1. They take on Bucknell in Lewisburg, Pa. on Saturday before heading to Happy Valley to face the Nittany Lions.
This Villanova matchup marks just the second time the two programs will meet. Their last encounter came during the 2010-11 season when the Nittany Lions collected a 6-1 win. After earning the doubles point with victories on court one and three, Penn State went on to sweep the first four courts.
UP NEXT
Penn State will continue its 2023 campaign against Princeton at home on Friday, Feb. 10 at 4 p.m. ET.
Check GoPSUSports.com for coverage of the Penn State men's tennis team during the season. Follow the team on Twitter @pennstateMTEN, Instagram @pennstatemtennis and on Facebook at facebook.com/pennstatemenstennis.