The men’s and women’s tennis teams both faced difficult matches this weekend, but managed to secure victories in every one.
The men’s tennis team improved their home record to 6-0. They hosted No. 54 ranked Denver on Friday and fought back from being down 2-3 for a 4-3 win. Seniors Logon Collins and Dan Mamalat brought in the final two points for the win at No. 3 and No. 1 singles, respectively. Mamalat won in a third set tiebreak against 32nd-ranked Henry Craig to clinch the win for the Golden Eagles. Junior Vukasin Teofanovic earned a 6-1, 7-6 win at No. 2 singles along with a first doubles win with Mamalat. Freshman Nick Dykema won at No. 5 singles in a three set match.
Saturday afternoon saw the men host a double-header against Bradley and South Dakota State. The men took on Bradley first, winning all courts except for the sixth singles position. The doubles teams swept Bradley and earned Marquette the doubles point. In singles play, Teofanovic (No. 1), Mamalat (No. 2), Collins (No. 3), Gleb Sklyr (No. 4), and Dykema (No. 5) all won easily in two set matches. Those victories secured the 6-1 victory for Marquette.
Later that night, Marquette took on its second competitor for the day, South Dakota State. The men’s doubles teams swept the competition again and were victorious on all singles courts except at No. 4 singles. At second singles, Mamalat did not lose a single game. Teofanovic defeated South Dakota State’s Andrea Boglic in a 7-6 second set tiebreak. Also bringing in singles wins were Collins, Dykema and freshman Mackenzie Stearns, giving Marquette another 6-1 win.
The women had a weekend away from home, traveling to Ball State Saturday and to Indiana-Purdue University Fort Wayne Sunday. The women defeated Ball State 4-3 after losing the doubles point to start off. However, singles courts No. 1, 3, 4 and 5 stepped up and snatched the victory for Marquette. No. 1 singles Ana Pimienta defeated Ball State’s Courtney Earnest 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. Also bringing in victories were juniors Ali Dawson at No. 3 singles and Vanessa Foltinger at No. 4 singles. Sophomore Laia Hernandez Soler brought in another point at No. 5 singles.
The women rang in another win Sunday against IPFW. Marquette was unable to win the doubles point, but dominated at singles. Marquette won singles courts 2-6 to secure a 5-2 victory. Sophomore sisters Laia and Aina Hernandez Soler went undefeated, being the only doubles team to pull out a win and by winning their singles matches. The team’s next match is a home contest against Minnesota Saturday at 10 a.m.
