AD-Men’s Tennis v Nevada -18

Back-to-back: Utah State men’s tennis wins second straight MW title

To whoever said that the only thing harder than winning a championship is defending it, the Utah State men’s tennis would like a word with you.

The Aggies defended their spot atop the Mountain West Conference, defeating Fresno State 4-1 to capture the team’s second consecutive MW tournament title.

“That was my biggest fear going into this, because this could be our last match. This could be the last run with these guys,” said USU head coach James Wilson. “I just want to keep it going because it’s just so much fun. They work so hard. They play for each other. They do it the right way and it’s just so much fun to be a part of.”

USU also took home the MW regular season title this season, finishing conference play with an 7-0 record. The Aggies have gone 19-1 against MW competition over the past two seasons. USU’s last loss to a conference team was April 9th, 2017 to New Mexico.

Utah State’s repeat chances took a hit early on, as Fresno State took the doubles point to start the match. USU’s senior Jaime Barajas and freshman Jose Carvajal defeated Zdenek Derkas and Cem Erturk 6-3 at the 1-spot. However, Cagatay Soke and Xander Veys  defeated freshman Valdemar Holm and senior Andrew Nakajima 7-5 while Mantas Bugailiskis and Youssef Hassan defeated freshmen Addy Vashistha and Felipe Acosta 6-4 to give the Bulldogs the early 1-0 lead in the match.

As singles play began, the Aggies bulldozed Fresno State. Holm, who struggled earlier this season versus Fresno State’s Erturk in a straight-sets defeat at home on April 8th, completely flipped the script in a 6-3, 6-2 victory on Saturday versus the same opponent. Freshman Vashistha followed with a win at the 6-spot, defeating Fresno State’s Jeremy Moser 6-2, 6-4 to give USU the 2-1 lead.

Barajas started at the 1-spot, defeating Xander Veys for the second time this season in a 6-4, 6-1 straight-sets victory. Bucur followed behind at the 2-spot with a straight-sets victory to clinch it, beating Bugailiskis 6-4, 6-3. Following the win, Bucur fell to his back before being swarmed by his teammates.

Utah State men’s tennis has started to form a dynasty in Mountain West tennis, and is in a good position moving forward. Of the eight players on this season’s roster, four were freshmen. A total of five different freshmen and sophomores contributed to Saturday’s championship victory.

“It means a lot,” Barajas said. “Half my team are freshmen and they really hold their own and it really means a lot to come back and take the trophy back to our place.”

Before any thoughts of a dynasty, however, USU still has thoughts of extending their current season. With the win, USU’s season is set to continue with the Aggies receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament with the victory.

Utah State’s first round opponent in the tournament will be announced along with the rest of the bracket on Tuesday.