HOUSTON – The University of Texas-Pan American Broncs men's tennis team faces off against the Nicholls State Colonels in a neutral site match on Sunday at 10 a.m.
 
Last Time Out
The Broncs won their second-straight match after defeating the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals 4-3 last Saturday at the Orville Cox Tennis Center.
 
"I am thrilled for the boys to get the win," Broncs head coach Brandon Stokes said. "These victories are about them. They put in the hard work and the smart work. I am proud of them. They represent the university and the Rio Grande Valley with class, honor and respect."
 
The Cardinals (1-4) opened doubles with a win on court two but the Broncs evened things on court one as the duo of Juan Cruz Soria and Koby Jansen defeated Leonard Ivic and Josip Smoljan 6-3. Miguel Alvarez-Hevia and Hector Ramirez then clinched the doubles point with a 6-3 win over Philipp Raickovic and Ryan Hoverson on court three.
 
Alvarez-Hevia added to the Broncs lead with a straight set 6-1, 6-2 win over Raickovic at the No. 5 singles spot. After the Cardinals picked up their first point on court three, Ramirez added another point for the Broncs with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Smoljan at the No. 2 spot. Nikola Crvelin followed with a 6-1, 6-4 win at the No. 4 spot over Joey Vatanadilok to clinch the match for the Broncs.
 
"I appreciate all the fans coming out," Stokes said. "We had a good turn out against an in-state rival. It was good to get up on them and clinch the match at 4-1. We wanted all six singles matches but we will take what we get. We know we have to keep improving because the schedule gets tougher but it is good to get a win against an in-state team."
 
Scouting the Colonels
The Colonels enter Sunday's match with a 0-2 record. They opened the season against LSU falling 0-7 to the No. 45 ranked Tigers and then they dropped their match to Alabama State 5-2 on January 24.
 
Bernard Wezeman has recorded the only singles win so far for the Colonels in dual match play as he posts a 1-1 record so far.  
 
The Series
The Broncs are 6-5 all-time against the Colonels in a series that dates back to 2005. The Broncs and Colonels played each other last season, as it was the Colonels who came away with the 4-3 win in a neutral site match.
 
The Broncs last defeated the Colonels on March 13, 2012 as they recorded a 4-3 victory in Thibodeaux, Louisiana.
 
Globetrotters
The Broncs have seven student-athletes representing six countries including, Argentina, Australia, Croatia, Mexico, Spain and Trinidad and Tobago.
 
Next Up
The Broncs continue their road stretch as they face off against the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders on Wednesday February 18.  

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