By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech tennis team was upended in its second-consecutive contest by a nationally ranked opponent as the Golden Eagles fell 7-0 at No. 13 Tennessee in Monday's affair in Knoxville.
Alex Alvarez managed a to capture a set in his No. 2 singles matchup with Alan Jesudason in the only solo affair to go three sets. The Golden Eagle sophomore out of Barcelona, Spain bounced back from a 6-3 loss in the opening set to claim a 6-1 triumph in the second, but was downed 6-1 in the third to drop the clash.
Murilo Burckhardt had the tall task of going up against a nationally-ranked foe in the form of No. 18 Shunsuke Mitsui in the No. 1 singles matchup, a bout that Burckhardt dropped 6-1, 6-1.
Jose Garcia knocked off Oliver Dao 6-2, 6-0 in the No. 3 slot, while Jan Kobierski took down Lucas Bitzer 6-3, 6-4 in the No. 4 position and Ian Cruz collected a 6-1, 6-3 win over Darek Kuczynski in the No. 5 meeting. The Vols (2-0) rounded out their singles success with a James Newton 6-1, 6-1 victory over Ricard Yepez in the No. 6 get-together.
Tech (0-2) was unable to notch a doubles nod with losses in each of the top two spots, while No. 3 battle pitting Darek Kuczynski and Lukas Krause against Ian Cruz and Jose Garcia did not finish with Kuczynski and Krause leading 4-3 at the time of its conclusion.
Oliver Dao and Lucas Bitzer were upended 6-1 by Shunsuke Mitsui and James Newton in the top tangle, while Alex Alvarez and Murilo Burckhardt were tripped up 6-1 by Alan Jesudason and Jan Kobierski in the No. 2 slot.
The Golden Eagles will prepare for a third-straight match against a "Power 4" conference opponent to begin the season behind a Thursday contest at Vanderbilt. Tech's tilt in Nashville is slated to start at 5 p.m. CT.
Photo courtesy of Cleveland State Athletics
