By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Athletics Media Relations
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – A captivating contest in Cookeville was the story in the Tennessee Tech tennis team's home opener against Lipscomb.
Trailing late in the match, the Golden Eagles rallied for a pair of three-set singles wins to erase a 3-2 deficit and come away with a 4-3 victory Friday afternoon at Tech Tennis Courts.
The Golden Eagles (4-5) have now won four of the last five affairs.
Tech kickstarted the contest with by clinching the doubles point before the two in-state counterparts split all six singles showdowns. The Bisons (5-5) earned solo nods toward the bottom of the lineup behind an Alex Vlahos 6-4, 7-6 win over Diego Munoz in the No. 4 position, an Oskar Szymczak 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory against Murilo Burckhardt in the No. 5 meeting and an Oliver Thoeny 6-4, 6-4 triumph over Linus Rohlin in the No. 6 spot to account for the club's three points.
An Oliver Dao 7-6, 6-3 win against Facundo Perlov in the top slot gave the Golden Eagles their second point of the match before Tech used victories in the No. 2 and No. 3 positions to cap off the comeback and capture the clash.
Davids Spaks first tied the tilt with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 nod against Henrique Ushizima in the No. 3 battle before Alex Alvarez pushed Tech to the finish line with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 triumph over Filippo Verdese in the No. 2 tangle.
"What a gutsy win that was for the boys," Golden Eagle head coach Mark Klysner said. "We played some of our best doubles to kick off the day and that gave us a lot of momentum into singles, but Lipscomb played great and really came out on fire on almost every court. Shoutout to Alex and Davids, who were both struggling with some injuries, to fight through and pull out some huge wins in their third sets. I couldn't be prouder of this team and the fight they have in them when adversity hits."
No. 79 Alvarez and Spaks rolled to a 6-1 victory over Facundo Perlov and Alex Vlahos in the No. 1 doubles matchup as the Golden Eagles claimed all three tandem tussles. Oliver Dao and Linus Rohlin followed suit with a 6-1 win of their own against Henrique Ushizima and Filippo Verdese in the No. 2 gathering, while Murilo Burckhardt and Diego Munoz topped Oskar Szymczak and Oliver Thoeny with a 6-3 decision in the No. 3 position to complete the doubles sweep.
The Golden Eagles will continue a season-long, four-match homestand on Tuesday, Mar. 3 as the purple and gold will welcome ETSU to town. First serve with TTU's future conference opponent is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT and admission to Tech Tennis Courts is free of charge.
Photo: Jim Dillon
