(Posted April 14, 2007)

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - One day after securing a berth in the Commonwealth Conference postseason for the second-consecutive year, Juniata locked up the third seed for the four-team competition on the strength of a 6-3 win over Moravian in the Eagles\' Commonwealth regular-season finale. Juniata (5-3, 4-2 Commonwealth) won two doubles matches and then claimed four wins in singles competition to secure the win. The Eagles will now face third seed Elizabethtown College in the Commonwealth Semifinals April 21 at Elizabethtown. Moravian (8-5, 3-3 Commonwealth) won at the top of both singles and doubles, but could not lock up the third seed and will now travel to play top seed Messiah College in the semifinals. Casey Chew (Phoenixville/Phoenixville) and Aaron Rhodes (Huntingdon/Huntingdon) won by an 8-3 margin at second doubles and Jau Feixas (University of Barcelona/Barcelona, Spain) and Jonathan Skoner (Central Catholic/Pittsburgh) posted an 8-2 win at third doubles to help Juniata get an early lead. Brandon Long (Lebanon/Lebanon) and Jarrad Silver (Walt Whitman/Bethesda, Md.) nearly claimed the doubles sweep but they lost a tough 9-7 decision at first doubles. Juniata then put the match away by taking the bottom four singles matches in the ladder. Ryan Navarro (Bishop Guilfoyle/Altoona) got it started by rallying for a 6-2, 7-6 (9-7) at third singles. Long then atoned for not earning a doubles win by cruising to a 6-2, 6-4 victory at fourth singles. Rhodes and Chew then posted matching 6-4, 6-1 wins at fifth and sixth singles respectively. Moravian posted wins at first and second singles in straight sets. Ian Box topped Skoner 6-2, 6-0 at first singles and Silver fell to Neil Caniga 6-0, 6-2 at second singles. Juniata will host Saint Francis (Pa.) in a non-conference on Monday. ###

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Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.