The University of Mary Washington men's tennis team, ranked 27th in the nation in the ITA preseason poll, improved to 4-0 against Division III opponents this spring with a pair of 8-1 victories on Sunday at the Battleground.

The Eagles opened with an 8-1 win over North Carolina Wesleyan College. In doubles, Ryland Byrd and Brandon Griffin won at one, 8-6; Derek Hagino and Matt Miles won at two, 8-2; and Joseph Brown and Patrick Hughes won at three, 8-4, as UMW entered singles with a 3-0 lead.

Griffin won at one, 7-6 (6), 6-4; Hughes won at three in a super breaker, 4-6, 6-4, 10-6, and Brown, Hagino, and Byrd won in straight sets for the 8-1 decision.

In the second match of the day, UMW defeated St. Mary's College in the Capital Athletic Conference opener, 8-1. Once again, the Eagles won all three doubles matches, this time with Hagino and Eric Hurwitz at one (8-2), Ryan Berry and Miles at two (8-1), and Byrd and Hughes at three, 8-1.

In singles, Hagino moved to two and won, 6-1, 6-0; Brown won at three, 6-1, 6-0; Byrd won at four, 6-1, 6-0; Miles won at five, 6-0, 6-1; and Berry won at six, 6-1, 6-2.

The Eagles will be back in action in one week, when they face Cal Lutheran University and Caltech in Thousand Oaks, California during spring break.