@CanesMensTennis Wins 5-2 in Opener
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The No. 52 ranked University of Miami men’s tennis team opened their spring season in a dominant way with a 5-2 victory over Florida Atlantic with the Canes winning five singles matches and one doubles match at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center.
“This match was a good test for us today,” said Coach Mario Rincon. “The guys were extremely tight and extremely nervous at the beginning. As they played some long points and got into long rallies, they shook off the nerves and started to play through their nerves.”
In singles action, No. 56 ranked Piotr Lomacki faced Robert Meade and controlled his match from the start, winning in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1.
“It was hard at the beginning, I felt more pressure for the doubles match. The moment I stepped onto the court for the singles, I felt pretty confident,” said Lomacki about his first spring season win.
Senior Wilfredo Gonzalez also found the winning form, dispatching Andre Marin-Kougoucheff in a dominant straight-set win, 6-1, 6-0. Fellow senior Henrique Tsukamoto faced Will Neuner and came out strong winning, 6-3, 6-1.
Freshman Christian Langmo faced Zandrix Acob and pushed through a tough second set to come away with a straight-set victory, 6-2, 6-3. Lone sophomore Bernard Tefel went up against Alexander Gitin and brushed aside his opponent, winning, 6-3, 6-1.
Freshman Kevin Bondar fell in a tough match against Kian Mclean, 6-4, 6-4.
“We are a really young team and we have a long way to go, and we need to play better, but today was a good first step and tomorrow we’ll be ready for UCF,” added Rincon.
In doubles action, senior Tsukamoto teamed up with freshman Lomacki and faced Robert Dubuque and Kian Mclean. Tsukamoto and Lomacki controlled the match right from the beginning, dispatching their opponents, 6-3.
Gonzalez and Langmo faced Will Neuner and Andrei Morin-Kougoucheff falling in heartbreaking fashion in a tiebreak, 7-6(7-2). Freshmen duo of Nile Clark and Niclas Genovese went against Robert Meade and Zandrix Acob falling, 6-2.
In an additional match, freshmen Alexander Fahnehjelm and Andrew Harrington defeated Alexander Gitin and Stefan Burnett in a tight match, 6-4.
The men are back in action tomorrow at the Schiff Center to take on in-state rival No. 70 UCF at 12 p.m. ET.
“I know UCF has a good team and we are not going to take anyone lightly,” Rincon said. “UCF is well coached and I am sure they will be ready to play tomorrow. Hopefully we will play better than today.”
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#52 Miami 5, Florida Atlantic 2
Singles competition
1. #56 Piotr Lomacki (UM) def. Robert Meade (FAU), 6-3, 6-1
2. Wilfredo Gonzalez (UM) def. Andrei Morin-Kougoucheff (FAU), 6-1, 6-0
3. Henrique Tsukamoto (UM) def. Will Neuner (FAU), 6-3, 6-1
4. Christian Langmo (UM) def. Zandriz Acob (FAU), 6-2, 6-3
5. Bernard Tefel (UM) def. Alexander Gitin (FAU), 6-3, 6-1
6. Kian Mclean (FAU) def. Kevin Bondar (UM), 6-4, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Neuner/Marin-Kougoucheff (FAU) def. Gonzalez/Langmo (UM), 7-6(7-2)
2. Tsukamoto/Lomacki (UM) def. Dubuque/Mclean (FAU), 6-3
3. Meade/Acob (FAU) def. Clark/Genovese (UM), 6-2
Additional Match:
Fahnehjelm/Harrington (UM) def. Gitin/Burnett (FAU), 6-4
Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (4,1,2,3,5,6)
