ELON, N.C. – For the second-straight season, the William & Mary men's tennis team fought tooth and nail with UNCW in the Colonial Athletic Association Championship match, but once again the Seahawks pulled out a narrow 4-2 victory to claim the league crown on Sunday afternoon at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center. After dropping the doubles point, the Tribe (13-11) twice pulled even thanks to singles victories from senior Christian Cargill at No. 1 and sophomore Brenden Volk at No. 6, but UNCW (19-4) pulled out victories at No. 3 and No. 5 singles to claim the championship.
 
The Seahawks used wins at the top two doubles positions to claim the initial point of the match, before Cargill knotted things at one with a win at the top spot. The Tribe senior earned a break at three-all in the opening set, winning four of the final five games in taking a 6-4 win. Cargill dropped the hammer in the second set, winning the first four games on the way to a commanding 6-1 triumph. It was his 18th win of the year and 63rd of his Green and Gold career.
 
After a Seahawk win at No. 2, Volk continued his winning ways at the No. 6 post to tie the match at two. He won his seventh straight and second in as many days as the CAA Championship. Volk cruised past Michael Morphy, 6-2, 6-1, to improve to 7-3 on the year.
 
UNCW moved back in front, 3-2, with a win at No. 5 as the title came down to tightening matches at both No. 3 and No. 4. The Seahawks' Ignasi de Rueda led by a set at the No. 3 spot after taking the first from freshman Louis Newman in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (3). The Tribe rookie led 5-4 in the second and had a trio of set points, but each time de Rueda fought it off on the way to winning the final three games and claiming the UNCW title, 7-5.
 
After dropping the opening set, 6-2, to Michael Copeland at No. 4, freshman Finbar Talcott roared back with a 6-1 win in the second.  He led 4-3 in the third, but the match was abandoned when the Seahawks clinched the title at No. 3.
 
Despite the championship setback, the Tribe enjoyed a strong 2018 campaign, going 13-11 and earning the top seed in the CAA Tournament for just the second time since 1998. W&M earned its highest national ranking in a decade, coming in at No. 45 in February. The Tribe also knocked off a top-25 foe for the first time since 2007 in No. 25 South Carolina as part of the program's 5-0 start to the season. It was the Green and Gold's best start since 1950.
 
#3 UNCW 4, #1 William & Mary 2
Singles
No. 1 – Christian Cargill (W&M) def. Andres Torres (UNCW) – 6-4, 6-1
No. 2 – Agustin Savarino (UNCW) def. Alec Miller (W&M) – 6-2, 6-4
No. 3 – Ignasi de Rueda (UNCW) def. Louis Newman (W&M) – 7-6 (3), 7-5
No. 4 – Finbar Talcott (W&M) vs. Michael Copeland (UNCW) – DNF, 2-6, 6-1, 4-3
No. 5 – Daniel Groom (UNCW) def. Sebastian Quiros (W&M) – 6-3, 6-4
No. 6 – Brenden Volk (W&M) def. Michael Morphy (UNCW) – 6-2, 6-1
Finishing Order: 1, 2, 6, 5, 3*
 
Doubles
No. 1 – Calzi/de Rueda (UNCW) def. Bautil/Miller (W&M) – 6-2
No. 2 – Morphy/Torres (UNCW) def. Chen/Volk (W&M) – 7-5
No. 3 – Cargill/Newman (W&M) vs. Savarino/Copeland (UNCW) – DNF, 5-5
Finishing Order: 1, 2*