Fordham Men’s Tennis faced a flurry of action since students left for Spring Break starting Saturday, March 11 where they defeated Wagner College 5-2 to snap their four-match losing streak.

On their home courts at the Life Time Athletic Center, the Rams took care of business over the weekend ending their skid and providing some momentum to propel them into the home stretch of their season. The match did not start how the Rams were hoping, however, as they dropped the doubles point to begin play.

“Wagner did a great job winning the doubles point but we never gave up,” said head coach David Slater.

The Rams responded swiftly, showcasing the importance of a veteran presence and the excitement of youth and potential. Graduate student Quinn Fender and freshman Dhillon Virdee-Oakley started off the singles matches Saturday, with both players winning in straight sets. Fender impressively dominated Wagner’s Rodrigo Perez, 6-0, 6-0.

The Rams secured the win thanks to victories by junior Nicholas Kanazirev (3-6, 6-4, 6-3), freshman John Mascone (6-3, 6-3) and junior Bingru Chen (6-3, 6-2).

For a Fordham Rams team that has been strong in doubles play but weak on the singles courts this season, Saturday’s win over Wagner signifies growth and improvement for the Rams looking to build off of it going forward.

“This was an excellent win and exactly what we needed heading into our spring break matches,” Coach Slater said.

The wins proved Slater’s confidence right, as the Rams took care of business in Orlando defeating Hardin-Simmons University 6-1, and Southern New Hampshire University 5-2 over the past week. The team then returned back to New York where they battled, but were unable to overcome Long Island University, falling 4-3.

Among the rest of the Atlantic 10, the Rams are beginning to climb from the bottom of the conference as they sit at 4-7. Virginia Commonwealth University currently sits comfortably atop the standings with their impressive 12-4 record. For Fordham going forward, they find themselves in an interesting spot of their season.

Looking ahead, the Rams are on the road on Saturday against Sacred Heart University, who are also 4-7 and coming off a win against Wagner College.

For Fordham, this weekend’s matchup should prove to be a strong test for their potential the rest of the season. A win would inch the Rams closer to the .500 mark as the playoffs near.