By Jim Fenton

NEWPORT, R.I. -- The Bridgewater State University men's tennis team wrapped up its non-conference schedule by winning its seventh straight match.

The Bears defeated Salve Regina University, 5-2, on Thursday afternoon at the Salve Regina Tennis Courts.

BSU (9-4) went 4-4 in non-conference matches this season. The Bears have clinched at least a tie for the Little East Conference championship with one match remaining.

The Bears and Seahawks (1-15) met for the first time since 1998 and it was BSU's first trip to Salve Regina since 1995.

The Bears won two of three doubles matches for the first point of the day, then took four of the six singles matches against the Seahawks, who finished their season with the loss.

At No. 1 doubles, BSU senior Adam Beatrice (Rockland, Mass.) and junior Khiem Nguyen (Burlington, Vt.) won over freshman Colin Fleet (Fall River, Mass.) and freshman Jesper Jensen (Saint John, Jersey, Channel Islands), 6-3.

The Bears' No. 3 team of senior Ryan Hebert (Taunton, Mass.) and junior Anthony Lucas (Weymouth, Mass.) earned a 6-1 win over junior J.J. Hawkshead (Park Ridge, N.J.) and sophomore Rei Otake (Tokyo, Japan).

Salve Regina's No. 2 team of senior Jacob Faulise (North Kingstown, R.I.) and freshman Kole Pinto (Acushnet, Mass.) defeated BSU freshmen Ryan Abreu (Lakeville, Mass.) and Will Horton (Lakeville, Mass.), 6-3.

Horton won at No. 1 singles over Faulise, 6-1, 6-2, while Lucas took No. 4 singles over Fleet, 6-1, 6-1.

At No. 5 singles, Hebert scored a 6-1, 6-0 win over Otake while freshman Jayton Woods (Kingston, Mass.) defeated Hawkshead, 6-0, 6-1.

Pinto gave the Seahawks a win at No. 2 singles, 6-3, 6-2, over Beatrice while Jensen won at No. 3 singles for Salve Regina over Nguyen, 2-6, 7-6 (7-0), 12-10.

BSU finishes the regular season on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Vermont State Castleton. The Bears are 5-0 against the Spartans since the series began in 2019.

A victory over the Spartans or a Rhode Island College loss to Salem State would give the Bears their second regular-season title in three years.

BSU is already assured of the No. 1 seed in the Little East tournament. The Bears will have a bye into the semifinal round next Thursday afternoon at the Rosen Memorial Tennis Courts.

One more victory will give BSU 10 wins, a rare feat in program history. The 2009 team had 11 victories while the Bears had 10 wins in 2013 and 2022.