DARTMOUTH, Mass. -- Senior Anthony Joseph (Acushnet, Mass.) and freshman Kyle Noseworthy (Dartmouth, Mass.) each posted wins in singles and doubles action, as fourth-seeded UMass Dartmouth notched a 5-1 dual-match victory over fifth-seeded Western Connecticut in quarterfinal round play of the 2019 Little East Conference Men's Tennis Championships Tuesday afternoon on the UMD Courts.
The host Corsairs, who improve to 8-10 on the season, advance to the Little East semifinal round to take on top-seeded and host UMass Boston on Friday afternoon at the Weymouth Tennis Club beginning at 1:00 pm. The visiting Colonials close out their campaign at 3-12 overall.
UMass Dartmouth took two of three doubles matches to jump out to the early lead, as Joseph teamed up with sophomore Tristin Viale (Westfield, Mass.) for an 8-2 win at the number one position while the tandem of Noseworthy and fellow freshman Chase Franco (Somerset, Mass.) prevailed by an 8-4 margin at the number three spot. Senior Chauncey Allers (Wilton, Conn.) and sophomore Matthew Carino (Sandy Hook, Conn.) combined for Western Connecticut's lone point of the day, as the duo posted an 8-4 victory at number two doubles.
Joseph, Noseworthy and sophomore Sean Nutter (Mattapoisett, Mass.) closed out the Corsair triumph with straight set singles wins at the bottom three positions in the lineup, as UMass Dartmouth advanced to the Little East semifinals for the ninth straight season.
Friday's other semifinal match will pit second-seeded Salem State against either third-seeded Rhode Island College or sixth-seeded Bridgewater State, who were playing in Tuesday's other quarterfinal round clash. The semifinal winners will meet for the 2019 Little East championship on Saturday afternoon, with the victor claiming the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III tournament.
(Photo Credit: Kyle Diangkinay '19, Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant)
