RICHMOND, Va. – After mother nature delayed the start of Longwood men's tennis' season even further, the Lancers finally made their 2021 debut at VCU.
 
Playing a doubleheader, the Lancers dropped their opening two duals of the season to the Rams on Sunday afternoon in Richmond, Va. The double feature kicked off the spring slate for the Lancers, who had their first two scheduled duals against Elon and Gardner-Webb postponed due to inclement weather.
 
The Rams, who finished their last full season with an Atlantic 10 championship and berth in the NCAA tournament, were led by their trio of VaSID All-State team performers in Charles Bertimon, Inigo Torre Martin, and Rayane Stable, who went a combined 6-0 in singles play.
 
Lancer freshman Andrew Ilett, making his collegiate debut on Sunday afternoon, squared off with Stable twice, dropping a 6-4, 6-1 decision in the opening match before falling 7-6, 6-3 in their second meeting of the day. Guilherme Sergio and Guillermo Cagigas each won five games in their opening matches against VCU's talented lineup, kicking off a new campaign on the heels of each winning at least five matches a season ago for the 7-5 Lancers.   
 
However, VCU, who finished last season 8-3, was efficient across both doubles and singles play to secure a pair of victories on Sunday.
 
Longwood will return home on Wednesday, Feb. 24 when they host Hampden-Sydney in Farmville, Va. The match is scheduled to start at 4 p.m.
 
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