College Sports

LEWISTON, Maine - UT Tyler junior Dustin Phillips, of Houston, fell in his NCAA Division III National Singles Tournament debut toNo. 7 seed John James of Mary Washington in a tie-break heartbreaker, 1-6, 7-6, 7-6, Friday.

Later in the day, Phillips paired with sophomore David Ashlock, of Arlington, to compete in the NCAA National Doubles Tournament. For the second time this season, the duo fell to Andy Bryan and Charlie Paukert of Gustavus Adolphus, 6-2, 6-3.

In singles action, Phillips was able to take the first set over James. However in the next two sets, James would take Phillips to a tie-break where he would win each time to take the match.

In the doubles bracket, Phillips and Ashlock were looking for a measure of revenge as they fell to Bryan and Paukert in the third Round of the NCAA team championships a little under two weeks ago in Saint Peter, Minn.. However, the end result would be the same as Phillips and Ashlock fell in straight sets.

Despite their quick exits from the tournament, Phillips and Ashlock have both earned the distinction of being the first-ever Patriot tennis players, men or women, to compete in the NCAA National Individual Championships.