By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech tennis team has officially grabbed sole possession of the 2016 Ohio Valley Conference regular season title, sealing the deal with an exclamation point behind a 7-0 win over Austin Peay Friday afternoon.
Having already claimed at least a share of the championship, Tech's overwhelming victory over the Governors (6-10, 5-3) gave the Golden Eagles (12-6, 8-0) the crown outright, while also putting TTU on the precipice of perfection as Tech will aim for an undefeated conference campaign Saturday against Murray State.
The Golden Eagles have now won 16-straight regular season OVC matches dating back to last year.
TTU grasped momentum early after seizing the doubles point, using wins in the No. 1 and No. 3 spot to take a 1-0 edge in the match. The veteran tandem of senior Alex Arovin and junior Alberto Esteban jolted through juniors Aaron Jumonville and Manuel Montenegro, 6-3, in the No. 1 slot, before the youthful duo of sophomore Jorge Alfonzo and freshman Guillermo Nicholas outlasted freshmen Alex Kartsonis and Chad Woodham, 7-6 (7-4), in the No. 3 position.
Sophomores Eduardo Mena and Marcos Bernardes did not finish their clash with sophomore Aleh Drobysh and freshman Almantas Ozelis.
For the third straight match, TTU took home wins in all six singles tilts, collecting hard-fought, three-set nods in four of the six affairs.
Eduardo Mena rallied back from a 7-6 first set loss to Aaron Jumonville in the No. 1 spot, capturing the next two sets, 6-2, 6-2, to move to an eye-popping 17-1 this spring. Alex Arovin followed suit with a three-set victory in the No. 2 slot, collecting the point with a 6-0, 5-7, 6-1 win against Almantas Ozelis.
Guillermo Nicolas remained perfect in OVC singles play after splitting the first two sets with Aleh Drobysh in the No. 3 position, before Drobysh retired with Nicolas leading 3-2 to clinch the point for the 5-foot-9 rookie. Marcos Bernardes took care of business in three sets, winning 6-4, 1-6, 6-0 in the No. 5 slot to move to 7-1 in OVC action.
Jorge Alfonzo also advanced to 7-1 in OVC play after powering past Chad Woodham, 6-0, 6-2, in the No. 6 slot, and Alberto Esteban needed only two sets as well with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Manuel Montenegro in the No. 3 spot.
The Golden Eagles will look to run the table in its conference slate with a Saturday afternoon matchup against Murray State, beginning at 1 p.m. CT. Admission to Saturday's match at Tech Tennis Courts is free of charge.
