RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's tennis team dropped a match to the Incarnate Word Cardinals (UIW) 6-1 on Friday at the Orville Cox Tennis Center. 
 
UIW (4-2) picked up wins on the second and third doubles courts to take the 1-0 lead. UTRGV junior Emilien Burnel and sophomore Karlo Krolo earned a hard-fought win in a heavyweight match at No. 1. Both duos made highlight plays to end tough rallies, but the Vaqueros pair outdueled Marwin Kralemann/Antoine Thiriat in a tiebreaker to take the 7-6 (8-6) victory. 
 
Burnel tied the score at 1-1 as he captured a solid win at No. 1 singles. He dominated the first set 6-0, then held off a respectable effort in the second to win it 7-5. UIW clinched the match with singles wins by Tomas Reche, Noah Deluna and Arnau Miralles in the third, sixth and fifth flights, respectively. 
 
Krolo and sophomore Sam Whitehead battled in grueling three-set matches at No. 2 and No. 4, respectively. Krolo bounced back from a tight first-set loss to control the second, but UIW's Joao Sasso held on for the win. Whitehead was resilient against Jose Garmendia but fell in the third. 
 
UTRGV's (3-7) next match is Friday against Prairie View A&M at the Orville Cox Tennis Center. The Vaqueros will play at 12 p.m. following the women's match at 9 a.m. 
 
Complete Results
Singles (1, 3, 6, 5, 2, 4) 
1. Emilien Burnel (UTRGV) def. Pietro Perego (UIW) 6-0, 7-5 
2. Joao Sasso (UIW) def. Karlo Krolo (UTRGV) 7-6 (7-3), 0-6, 6-1  
3. Tomas Reche (UIW) def. Borna Devald (UTRGV) 6-4, 7-6 (7-1) 
4. Jose Garmendia (UIW) def. Sam Whitehead (UTRGV) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 
5. Arnau Miralles (UIW) def. Chris Lawrance (UTRGV) 6-2, 7-5 
6. Noah Deluna (UIW) def. Agustin Salazar (UTRGV) 6-4, 6-4  
 
Doubles (2, 3, 1) 
1. Emilien Burnel/Karlo Krolo (UTRGV) def. Marwin Kralemann/Antoine Thiriat (UIW) 7-6 (8-6)  
2. Joao Sasso/Jose Garmendia (UIW) def. Borna Devald/Sam Whitehead (UTRGV) 6-4
3. Tomas Reche/Arnau Miralles (UIW) def. Agustin Salazar/Chris Lawrance (UTRGV) 6-4 

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