WINONA LAKE – Grace College’s men's tennis team proved it’s worth of a No. 1 seed on Tuesday with a 9-0 romp of St. Francis in the first round of the Crossroads League Tournament. The Lancers advanced to Thursday's league semifinals, as they will host Marian at 4 p.m. at Miller Field. “It was good to get the first round under our belts. This will give us confidence as we head to Thursday's match with Marian,” said Grace head coach Larry Schuh. “We need to make sure that we play solid, and we are up for Thursday. They are a scrappy team, and we have to be sure that we are on top of our game.” Grace won all three doubles points from the Cougars (4-10) with Daniel Sanchez and Jose Marval winning 8-5 at No. 1, and Ethan Grove and David Driscoll winning by the same score at No. 3. Jack Wang and Michael Humphrey earned an 8-1 victory at No. 2 doubles. Humphrey, who completed an undefeated league season for the Lancers (9-2), continued his outstanding senior season with a 6-1, 6-4 victory at No. 4 singles. Marval, at No. 2, and Ricardo Bedon, at No. 5, blanked their opponents in singles competition. Sanchez (6-1, 6-1) and Jacob Stump (6-1, 6-0) made short work of their opposition, and Gabe Vervynckt closed out the sweep with a 6-4, 6-1 victory at No. 6. As the No. 1 seed, Grace will host Thursday's semifinals at Miller Field. With a win against Marian, the Lancers will also host Saturday's championship match against Huntington or Indiana Wesleyan with a berth to NAIA Nationals at stake.
