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Source: goaztecs.com
Photo: Rafael Gonzalez Almazan provided a huge victory at No. 6 singles to help the Aztecs defeat New Mexico on Friday in the MW tournament. Courtesy goaztecs.com
Aprill 28, 2017 (Boise) - Fifth-seeded San Diego State won its fifth straight match Friday with a 4-2 triumph over No. 4 seed New Mexico in the first round of the 2017 Mountain West Men’s Tennis Championship at Appleton Tennis Center.
With the victory, SDSU raises its record to 10-14 on the year and will face the winner of the Utah State-Boise State clash on Saturday, starting at 6 p.m. MT/5 p.m. PT. In addition, the Aztecs swept the season series from the Lobos (12-13) after winning by an identical 4-2 count in Albuquerque, N.M., on April 16.
However, things started ominously on Friday, as the Scarlet and Black trailed 1-0 after dropping two doubles matches. The SDSU pairing of senior Milen Ianakiev (Elz, Hesse, Germany) and junior Santiago Cevallos (Queretaro, Mexico) was the first experience UNM’s bite with a 6-1 setback at the hands of Bart Van Leijsen and Dominic West in the No. 1 position, while the duo of senior Marko Goles-Babic (Zagreb, Croatia) and freshman David Hough (Traralgon, Australia) experienced a similar fate on court three, falling victim to Rodolfo Jauregui and Sean Baklini, 6-3.
With the doubles outcome no longer in question, the encounter at No. 2 was halted with the tandem of sophomore Sander Gjoels-Andersen and freshman Nicholas Mitchell (Ojai, Calif.) holding a slim 4-3 lead over Ricky Hernandez-Tong and Lawrence Perrin.
The prospects for victory seemed remote for the Aztecs, who entered today’s engagement with a 1-12 record after losing the doubles point. However, the revitalized SDSU squad entered singles competition against the Lobos with grit and determination, posting straight-set decisions in four of six matches to pull off the win.
Freshman Joel Popov (Tampere, Finland) provided a spark in the fifth position with a 6-1, 6-2 conquest of Perrin, while Goles-Babic captured his eighth in a row with a 6-3, 6-4 triumph over Van Leijsen at center court.
UNM knotted the score at 2-2 after West upended Gjoels-Andersen, 6-2, 6-3, in the No. 2 spot. However, freshman Rafael Gonzalez Almazan (Madrid, Spain) came through with a huge victory over Jorge Escutia in the sixth position, 6-2, 6-2, to put the Aztecs in front for good.
Shortly thereafter, Cevallos dispatched Jauregui at No. 4 by a 6-4, 6-4 tally to give San Diego State just its second victory ever against the Lobos in seven matches at the MW Championship.
The final encounter of the day at No. 2 remained unfinished as Ianakiev found himself trailing 4-3 in the third set against Hernandez-Tong after splitting the first two 6-3, 3-6.
SDSU’s semifinal match on Saturday will feature live stats and streaming video from the Mountain West Network, with links available on GoAztecs.com.
Mountain West Championship
First Round
[5] San Diego State 4, [4] New Mexico 2
April 28, 2017
Appleton Tennis Center
Boise, Idaho
Doubles
1. Bart Van Leijsen/Dominic West (UNM) def. Santiago Cevallos/Milen Ianakiev (SDSU), 6-1
2. Sander Gjoels-Andersen/Nicholas Mitchell (SDSU) vs. Lawrence Perrin/Ricky Hernandez-Tong (UNM), 4-3, DNF
3. Rodolfo Jauregui/Sean Baklini (UNM) def. Marko Goles-Babic/David Hough (SDSU), 6-2
Order of finish: 1, 3
New Mexico wins doubles point
Singles
1. Marko Goles-Babic (SDSU) def. Bart Van Leijsen (UNM), 6-3, 6-4
2. Milen Ianakiev (SDSU) vs. Ricky Hernandez-Tong (UNM), 6-3, 3-6, 3-4 DNF
3. Dominic West (UNM) def. Sander Gjoels-Andersen (SDSU), 6-2, 6-2
4. Santiago Cevallos (SDSU) def. Rodolfo Jauregui (UNM), 6-4, 6-4
5. Joel Popov (SDSU) def. Lawrence Perrin (UNM), 6-1, 6-2
6. Rafael Gonzalez Almazan (SDSU) def. Jorge Escutia (UNM), 6-2, 6-2
Order of finish: 5, 1, 3, 6, 4*
* - Match-clinching victory