Men’s tennis still winless after loss to Bobcats
The Utah State men’s tennis team took to the Sports Academy courts in hopes of capturing its first win of the season Thursday night but fell short against the Montana State Bobcats 3-4.
The Aggies started off strong, winning two doubles matches to gain the first point.
No. 1 doubles pairing Sven Poslusny and Marcus Fritz hit big serves and closed out points at the net to win their match 8-2. No. 2 doubles Curran Wearmouth and Lenny Whiting lost to Niklas Brandes and Markus Schleuter 2-8. No. 3 doubles Matt Sweet and Nate Ballam sealed the deal by holding Montana State down with their offensive play and won their match 8-3.
With the doubles point secure, the Aggies looked to maintain their momentum in singles action, but the Bobcats were not ready to back down. Singles action proved to be more of a challenge for the young Aggie team, as the Bobcats refused to hand over any matches easily.
“We were expecting them not to back down,” said assistant coach Bryan Marchant. “They are a believing team.”
Posluny battled back against Montana’s Niklas Brandes in the No. 1 singles, after losing the first set 6-7 in a tie breaker. Hitting his shots and keeping his intensity high, Poslusny beat Brandes in the second.
The third set brought more problems than successes for Poslusny. The native German was issued a code violation when he smashed his racket onto the court after getting down love-30, 4-5.
The resulting penalty point was awarded to Brandes, giving him a chance to win the match with a love-40 advantage. After an unforced error from Poslusny at love-40, Posluny fired a ball into the side of the court and earned USU its second code violation. The point penalty was transferred to fellow Aggie player Wearmouth’s Montana opponent Diego Campos, playing the No.4 singles position.
Wearmouth struggled against Campos and lost the first set 7-5. Wearmouth was up five games to none in the second set when his opponent found a groove with his forehands and serves and hit his marks. The second set went into a tie breaker, and Wearmouth won the second set 6-7 to level the playing field.
Trouble struck in the third when Campos’ left leg cramped at 3-1. After a medical time out, Campos stepped gingerly but maintained his level of play.
“Really go at it and put the ball away — nothing fancy, just put the ball away,” Wearmouth said about his game plan against the injured Bobcat.
Wearmouth battled for more than three hours, fighting his own cramping legs and injured left arm. In the end, the marathon match went to Montana State. Marchant said Wearmouth played like a seasoned vet and not the incoming freshman he is.
“He was cramping, too ,and played a tough match — played through the pain,” Marchant said of Wearmouth. “He played smart, just didn’t get it done.”
Wearmouth said his opponent’s ability to dominate the game frustrated his own style of tennis.
“(Campos) was solid on both sides, and I really tried to exploit him with my inside-out forehand,” Wearmouth said. “He went up 6-0 in the tie break — started thumping forehands out of nowhere; it was frustrating — felt like I went away from my game for a little while there.”
In the No. 3 and No. 5 singles positions, the Aggie players held strong to defeat the Bobcats. Fritz defeated MSU’s Albert Fuentes 6-3, 6-2 in No. 3 singles.
Junior Lenny Whiting defeated Prithiv Sivasubrainium in a three-set battle, 6-7, 6-4, 6-1 in No. 5 singles. Senior Nate Ballam fought but ended up losing his match in two sets 6-4, 7-6 in No. 6 singles.
“It was a tough loss; we should have had that match,” Marchant said. “It was good to have a close match like that.”
The Aggies host Portland State Saturday, Feb. 4 at the Sports Academy and Racquet Club in Logan.
– mega.bodi@aggiemail.usu.edu
Doubles
1. Sven Poslusny/Marcus Fritz (USU) def. Diego Campos/Alberto Fuentes (MSU), 8-2
2. Niklas Brandes/Markus Schleuter (MSU) def. Curran Wearmouth/ Lenny Whiting (USU), 2-8
3. Matt Sweet/Nate Ballam (USU) def. Lander Jewett/Prithiv Sivasubraniam (MSU), 8-3
Singles
1. Niklas Brandes (MSU) def. Sven Poslusny (USU), 7-6, 6-0,6-4
2. Markus Schleuter (MSU) def. Matt Sweet (USU), 6-3, 6-4
3. Marcus Fritz (USU) def. Alberto Fuentes (MSU), 6-3, 6-2
4. Diego Campos (MSU) def. Curran Wearmouth (USU), 7-5, 7-6, 7-6
5. Lenny Whiting (USU) def. Prithiv Sivasubraniam (MSU), 7-6, 6-4, 6-1
6. Martiu-Marilles (MSU) def. Nate Ballam (USU), 6-4, 7-6