Men's Tennis Downs Iowa 5-2
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami men’s tennis team completed a perfect home-opening weekend thanks to a 5-2 victory over the University of Iowa Sunday afternoon at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center.
With the win, Miami improved to 3-2 on the year and picked up its first-ever win over the Hawkeyes.
“It’s exciting that our guys came out and fought,” head coach Aljosa Piric said. “We talk all the time about fighting and that was exciting to see. In doubles one through three and in singles one through six, our guys fought and that’s what it takes.”
Iowa took the early lead, as it captured the doubles point. Christian Langmo and Dane Dunlap picked up the Canes’ only win in doubles competition, as they handed the Hawkeye tandem of Jake Jacoby and Joe Tyler their first loss in doubles play this spring.
The doubles win for Langmo and Dunlap moved the duo to 4-1 on the spring.
Miami completely dominated singles play, as it won five of the six singles matches.
Freshman Adria Soriano got Miami off to a hot start in singles competition, as he posted a straight-set win over Iowa’s Josh Silverstein (6-0, 6-3) to get Miami on the board. Soriano’s win moved the Hurricane rookie to 11-4 on the year.
The Hurricanes took a 2-1 lead following fellow freshman Bojan Jankulovski’s win over Kareem Allaf, 7-6 (7-2), 6-2.
Miami would then push its advantage to 3-1 thanks to senior Niclas Genovese’s come-from-behind triumph over Jonas Larsen. Larsen jumped out to an early advantage after he posted a 6-3 victory in the first set, but Genovese charged back with 6-3 and 6-2 wins in the following two sets.
Miami clinched the match thanks to Langmo’s three-set win over Piotr Smietana at the No. 1 position. Langmo’s win was his 10th on the year.
“Iowa is a solid team and it lets our guys know that we can beat this type of teams,” Piric said. “From here, we just have to take it and continue to get better. There’s a lot of room to improve in a lot of spots, but we just have to keep growing and keep improving.”
Dunlap, competing at the No. 4 position, also earned a win for Miami, overcoming Joe Tyler, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2. With the win, the redshirt sophomore ran his record to 8-6 on the year.
Miami returns to action welcomes FAU to the Neil Schiff Tennis center on Feb. 11. The match is set to begin at 11 a.m.
For all of the latest news around Miami’s men’s tennis team, follow @CanesMensTennis on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or go to HurricaneSports.com.
Singles competition
1. Christian Langmo (UM) def. Piotr Smietana (IOWA) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
2. Adria Soriano (UM) def. Josh Silverstein (IOWA) 6-0, 6-3
3. Bojan Jankulovski (UM) def. Kareem Allaf (IOWA) 7-6 (7-2), 6-2
4. Dane Dunlap (UM) def. Joe Tyler (IOWA) 6-3, 2-6, 7-6
5. Niclas Genovese (UM) def. Jonas Larsen (IOWA) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
6. Will Davies (IOWA) def. Tatsuki Shimamoto (UM) 6-3, 3-6, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Kareem Allaf/Jonas Larsen (IOWA) def. Adria Soriano/Bojan Jankulovski (UM) 6-2
2. Piotr Smietana/Will Davies (IOWA) def. Pablo Aycart/Nile Clark (UM) 7-6 (7-4)
3. Christian Langmo/Dane Dunlap (UM) def. Jake Jacoby/Joe Tyler (IOWA) 6-4
Match Notes:
Iowa 1-4
University of Miami 3-2
