RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men's tennis team earned a solid 4-3 win Friday over the North Dakota (UND) Fighting Hawks at the Orville Cox Tennis Center.
UTRGV (8-12) took the 1-0 lead with solid doubles play. The freshman duo of
Paolo Bonaguro and
Will Roberts were quick to capture a 6-2 win in the third match, playing fast and loud doubles. North Dakota (5-14, 1-1 Summit League) evened up the session with a win on Court Two.
In the top flight, senior captain
Emilien Burnel and freshman
Ivo Isqueiro played tough to come back from an early deficit and clinch the doubles point with a 7-5 win. Their match was thrilling to the final point, with fast rallies and good energy.
The singles session was competitive across all six courts. Isqueiro kept his momentum from doubles rolling in his solo match, extending UTRGV's lead to 2-0 with a swift 6-3, 6-3 win. The Fighting Hawks got on the board with a straight-set win on the second court.
Freshman
Santiago Serrano extended his winning streak to five matches with a 6-2, 6-4 win in the fourth flight. His powerful shots kept his opponent off-balance and Serrano's energy encouraged his teammates. North Dakota cut its deficit to 3-2 with a win at No. 5.
Burnel clinched the victory with a hard-fought and entertaining effort on the top court. He took the first set, 6-3, then North Dakota's
Ange-Kevin Koua came back to take the second, 6-1. The third frame saw the two swap scores through the first few games to a 2-2 tie, then Burnel's athletic play and incredible quickness helped him go on a run to close it out, 6-3.
Roberts was locked in a battle on the sixth court with
Christo Alex. Their first set with a lengthy duel that saw Alex take the win, 7-6 (7:3). Roberts came back to win the second, 6-1, to force a 10-point tiebreaker in the third with the team victory settled. Roberts showed good fight after falling behind 4:8, coming all the way back to tie the frame at 8:8. But Alex controlled late and took the win, 10:8.
When UTRGV gets back in action, it'll be starting Western Athletic Conference (WAC) play with an 11 a.m. match March 28 against Grand Canyon at the Orville Cox Tennis Center.
UTRGV Results
Doubles (3, 2, 1)
1.
Emilien Burnel/
Ivo Isqueiro (UTRGV) def. Leandro Zgraggen/Jerell Yasin (UND) 7-5
2. Ange-Kevin Koua/Victor Moreno Lozano (UND) def.
Agustin Salazar/
Santiago Serrano (UTRGV) 6-4
3.
Paolo Bonaguro/
Will Roberts (UTRGV) def. Ethan Terry/Christo Alex (UND) 6-2
Singles (3, 2, 4, 5, 1, 6)
1.
Emilien Burnel (UTRGV) def. Ange-Kevin Koua (UND) 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
2. Leandro Zgraggen (UND) def.
Agustin Salazar (UTRGV) 6-2, 6-3
3.
Ivo Isqueiro (UTRGV) def. Ethan Terry (UND) 6-3, 6-3
4.
Santiago Serrano (UTRGV) def. Jerall Yasin (UND) 6-2, 6-4
5. Jayho Hong (UND) def.
Paolo Bonaguro (UTRGV) 6-3, 6-4
6. Christo Alex (UND) def.
Will Roberts (UTRGV) 7-6 (7:3), 1-6, 1-0 (10:8)
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