By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech tennis made it two-straight in the win column to start its OVC campaign, routing Austin Peay, 7-0, in the Golden Eagles' first road conference match of the season. Fresh off a dominating 7-0 nod over Eastern Illinois in the OVC opener last Saturday, Tech (7-6, 2-0) mirrored its success with an overwhelming showing in Clarksville for the club's 19th-straight conference win dating back to 2015.
TTU was nearly flawless in Friday's blanking over the Govs (4-10, 1-2) that closed out the month of March, with only one of its six singles matchups needing three sets, a Marcos Bernardes 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 win in the No. 2 spot over Almantas Ozelis. Carlos Tajes prevailed in the No. 6 matchup due to a Govs' forfeit, the only other singles duel that wasn't two sets.
No. 85 Eduardo Mena continued his slew of recent success behind a 7-6 (7-0), 6-4 victory against Manuel Montenegro in the No. 1 slot, the Bultrago del Lozoya, Spain native's seventh-straight singles win. Overall, the reigning OVC Player of the Year leads Tech with an 11-2 mark this spring.
Senior Alberto Esteban extended his stellar play of late, rolling to his fourth consecutive singles victory thanks to a 6-1, 7-6 (7-1) nod over Aleh Drobysh in the No. 3 position. Jorge Alfonzo saw his name in the singles lineup for the first time in two OVC matches, and was more than up to the task as the 5-foot-9 junior tallied a 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) win against Chad Woodham out of the No. 4 slot.
Freshman Marc Mila rounded out Tech's impressive singles brigade with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over James Mitchell in the No. 5 spot.
The Golden Eagles kick started the match in prime fashion after capturing the doubles point, using a an Austin Peay forfeit in the No. 3 position against Carlos Tajes and Jorge Alfonzo, and an Alberto Esteban and Guillermo Nicolas 6-2 win over Manual Montenegro and James Mitchell in the No. 2 slot. The No. 1 matchup pitting Eduardo Mena and Marcos Bernardes against Aleh Drobysh and Almantas Ozelis did not finish, with the duo of Mena and Bernardes leading 5-3.
TTU will now set its sights on the month of April as the Golden Eagles head to Eastern Kentucky for an Apr. 1 showdown with the Colonels in Richmond. The match, which is Tech's final road tilt of the regular season, is slated to get underway at 11 a.m. CT.
Photo by Tony Marable
