BRISTOL, R.I. – The Roger Williams University Men's Tennis team will host the No. 2 seed in the Conference of New England (CNE) Tournament Nichols College with the CNE Title on the line Friday, May 1 at 4:00 pm at the RWU Tennis Courts.
The Hawks are coming off a 4-0 victory over No. 4 Colby-Sawyer in the CNE Semifinals, taking the doubles point 2-0, before taking three points in singles matches for the win. Roger Williams with the win went to 17-5 on the season, while posting a 10-1 record during the regular season in CNE play.
Nichols (12-6-1, 10-1 CNE) were able to reach the title game after hosting No. 3 Endicott, defeating the Gulls 4-2. The Bison took the doubles point, ahead of playing out all but one match to secure the victory.
The Hawks are 20-23 in the all-time series against the Bison, dating back to 1976 posting a 4-6 record in their last 10 matches. The Bison have dropped 12 of their 21 matches all-time in Bristol.
The Hawks came out with a 5-2 win over Nichols during their last match on Mar. 20 in Bristol, stopping a six-match losing streak to the Bison who have dominated CNE Men's Tennis in the last decade, winning 11-of the last 12 championships held by the conference. The title they lost came in a condensed pod season in 2020-21, when they fell to the Hawks 5-3, in Bristol in the Pod Finals. The Hawks also were the last team to beat them in a full season of competition in 2010-11 defeating the Bison 5-1.
Nichols is looking for their 16th championship in program history, while the Hawks are in search of their third since joining then the Commonwealth Coast Conference. Head Coach Barry Gorman is looking for his second conference title, first since the pod season in 2020-21, and is coming off his fourth conference Coach of the Year honor.
The winner will earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament, with selections to be announced on Monday, May 4 at 12:30 pm.
