GENEVA, N.Y.- The Hobart College tennis team defeated Rensselaer, which is ranked 39th in the latest Oracle/ITA Division III Team Rankings, 7-2 in its regular season finale at the HWS Tennis Center this afternoon. The win was the Statesmen's first victory over the Engineers since 2012.
 
Hobart (14-4, 6-1) took a 2-1 lead in today's match with wins at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles. First-year Alan Dubrovsky and sophomore Jonah Salita collected an 8-5 win in the top spot. Dubrovsky and Salita trailed 5-4 and won the final four games as they notched their seventh doubles win of the season. They are 7-4 at No. 1 this year. Junior Harry Nichols and sophomore Jonathan Atwater continued to roll at No. 3 doubles. They defeated Winston Yu and Sundar Devkottai for their ninth straight victory. Nichols and Atwater are a team-best 12-5 in doubles play this year. RPI (10-7, 5-2), won 8-2 at No. 2 doubles.
 
 The Statesmen outlasted the Engineers in singles play. First-year Joe Mallon gave Hobart a 3-1 lead when he topped 6-2, 6-0 at No. 6. Mallon is now 11-5 in his rookie season. After falling behind 3-0 in the first set, Dubrovsky rallied to defeat Sebastian Castillo-Sanchez 6-4, 6-4. With his 10th straight victory, Dubrovsky is now a team best 18-4 in singles play with a perfect 7-0 mark in the second spot. Salita clinched the overall match for Hobart with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win at No. 3. Salita finishes the regular season with a 14-9 record in singles play. Senior Michael Rusk, who was playing in his final match at the HWS Tennis Center, bested Winston Yu  1-6, 7-6 (7-3), 10-5. Rusk finished the regular season on a five match win streak and is now 6-3 on the year. Nichols extended his winning streak to seven games with a 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 10-5 win at No. 4. He is 11-6 on the year with a 7-6 record in the fourth spot of the lineup.
 
With today's victory, their eighth in a row, the Statesmen locked up the second seed in next weekend's Liberty League Tournament. Nationally ranked Skidmore, the Engineers, and Vassar will join Hobart in Ithaca, N.Y. The Statesmen and Engineers will meet again in one semifinal while the Thoroughbreds and Brewers will square off in the other semifinal at Cornell's Reis Tennis Center.