COLCHESTER, Vt. - The Saint Michael's College men's tennis team returned after nearly a month-long layoff and dropped a Northeast-10 Conference match to Adelphi University by a count of 8-1 on Saturday at the SMC Tennis Courts. The Purple Knights slipped to 4-3 overall and 3-3 in the NE-10, while the Panthers improved to 4-6 and 4-0.

The hosts opened up by claiming one of three doubles matches, as junior Eric Parziale (Pinehurst, N.C./Pinecrest) and sophomore Nick Bosco (Glastonbury, Conn./East Catholic) fought through a 9-8 (8-6) triumph at No. 1 for the lone Purple Knight victory.

Three of the singles matches included at least one close set victory for the Panthers. Bosco rallied to tie junior Andreas Hammar (Norrtalje, Sweden/Rodengymnasiet) before falling 6-2, 4-6, 10-6 at No. 1, while Parziale played a trio of close sets in the second slot during an eventual 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-1) setback. Senior Sam Cieplicki (South Burlington, Vt./New Hampton School) dropped 6-3, 7-5 decision at No. 3.

The Purple Knights are at regionally-ranked Southern New Hampshire University on Tuesday for a 3 p.m. NE-10 match. The Penmen are the sixth-ranked team in the East region according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA).