LAFAYETTE, La. – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's tennis team was defeated 5-2 by the Tyler Junior College Apaches (TJC) to open the Louisiana Winter Classic on Friday at the Cajun Courts in Lafayette, La.  
 
UTRGV will close the classic Saturday at 10 a.m. against the Southern Miss Golden Eagles back at the Cajun Courts. 
 
The Vaqueros took the early 1-0 advantage after doubles. The No. 3 duo of freshman McAllen Memorial alum Agustin Salazar and senior Chris Lawrance earned a swift 6-2 victory, then the No. 2 duo of sophomores Borna Devald and Sam Whitehead clinched the point with a 6-3 win. TJC's duo of Diego Dalisay/Dan Persson picked up a 7-5 win at No. 1. 
 
TJC's Tim Riedel and Persson earned wins in the No. 2 and No. 6 singles flights, respectively, to put the Apaches up 2-1. Junior Emilien Burnel tied the match at 2-2 with a commanding 6-2, 6-1 victory in the No. 1 flight.  
 
TJC clinched the match victory with singles wins in the third, fourth and fifth flights. 
 
Complete Results
Singles (2, 6, 1, 3, 5, 4) 
1. Emilien Burnel (UTRGV) def. Diego Dalisay (TJC) 6-2, 6-1 
2. Tim Riedel (TJC) def. Karlo Krolo (UTRGV) 6-3, 6-0 
3. Juan Carlos Garcia (TJC) def. Borna Devald (UTRGV) 7-6 (3), 6-2 
4. Emilio Vila (TJC) def. Sam Whitehead (UTRGV) 6-2, 6-3 
5. Nikola Keremedchiev (TJC) def. Chris Lawrance (UTRGV) 7-6 (5), 6-0 
6. Dan Persson (TJC) def. Agustin Salazar (UTRGV) 6-1, 6-3 
 
Doubles (3, 2, 1) 
1. Diego Dalisay/Dan Persson (TJC) def. Emilien Burnel/Karlo Krolo (UTRGV) 7-5 
2. Borna Devald/Sam Whitehead (UTRGV) def. Andrew Chang/Naithaolin Golmei (TJC) 6-3 
3. Agustin Salazar/Chris Lawrance (UTRGV) def. Tim Riedel/Nikola Keremedchiev (TJC) 6-2 

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