Box Score ORLANDO -- The University of Dayton men's tennis team fell just short of advancing to the finals of the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship for the second straight season with a 4-3 loss to No. 1 VCU on Saturday morning. Dayton finishes its season with a 16-8 record on the season. 

Dayton came out of the gate firing, taking large leads on all three doubles court, including a 3-0 lead at No.1 and 4-1 advantages on both of the bottom two courts. Langford Hills/Joe DeMarco and Steven Karl/Lorenzo Rollhauser won courts No. 2 and 3, respectively, each by scores of 6-3 to put the Flyers in front early.

VCU bounced back to take a 2-1 lead in singles play with a pair of straight-set victories at courts No. 4 and 3. Jordan Benjamin evened the match back up at 2-2 with a 7-6, 6-1 win at the top spot of the lineup for his 15th win at No. 1 singles this spring. The Rams took back the lead with a 6-0, 6-4 win at No. 6, but Langford Hills pulled the Flyers right back into a deadlock with the top seed in the A-10 with a 7-6, 6-4 win at No. 2 over Arvin Noren. Joe DeMarco was tied 5-5 in the third and decisive set of the match, but ultimately dropped the next two points with the clincher coming on a deuce point to send VCU to the finals.

Seniors Jordan Benjamin, Lorenzo Rollhauser and Langford Hills all leave a tremendous legacy behind them. Jordan Benjamin had a historic 2018 season with an undefeated 16-0 record in dual match play, earned the first-ever berth to the NCAA Tennis Championships for a Dayton athlete, and was the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Year. Benjamin and Rollhauser are also the winningest class in Dayton Flyer tennis history with 65 wins in their four-year careers. Hills joined Dayton as a graduate transfer from Alabama and immediately made his impact felt in his one season with a 14-3 mark in dual match play at No. 2 singles. 

The Flyers will return several pieces from this year's team, as well as bring in an exciting batch of newcomers for the 2019-2020 season. Junior Spencer Richey, Sophomore Steven Karl and Freshman Joe DeMarco were all a part of the lineup in tournament play with all three winning a double-digit amount of matches in dual match play this spring.

#1 VCU def. #4 DAYTON, 4-3

SINGLES

1. Jordan Benjamin (UD) def. Rayane Stable (VCU) 7-6(5), 6-1
2. Langford Hills (UD) def. Arvid Noren (VCU) 7-6(2), 6-4
3. Philip Mobius (VCU) def. Spencer Richey (UD) 6-3, 6-3
4. Inigo Torre Martin (VCU) def. Steven Karl (UD) 6-0, 6-2
5. Javier Amantegui (VCU) def. Joe DeMarco (UD) 6-1, 6-7(4), 7-5
6. Inaki Rivero Crespo (VCU) def. Lorenzo Rollhauser (UD) 6-0, 6-4
Order of Finish: 4, 3, 1, 6, 2, 5

DOUBLES

1. Jordan Benjamin/Spencer Richey (UD) vs. Inigo Torre Martin/Arvid Noren (VCU) 4-3, DNF
2. Langford Hills/Joe DeMarco (UD) def. Javier Amantegui/Rayane Stable (VCU) 6-3
3. Steven Karl/Lorenzo Rollhauser (UD) def. Inaki Rivero Crespo/Philip Mobius (VCU) 6-3
Order of Finish: 2, 3