LOGAN, Utah – Utah State men's tennis (6-3) was victorious in its doubleheader on Friday at the Sports Academy & Racquet Club, as the Aggies defeated Santa Clara 5-2 and Montana State 7-0.

"It was a really good day. I was really impressed with the way we played doubles against Santa Clara and it was good to get that win," said head coach James Wilson. "They are a good team and it was a strong effort from Isaac (Arevalo Gómez) and Felipe (Acosta). We did a really good job after losing the first set and we kept battling back. That was really tough and we did a great job at that."

In the first match of the day, USU sophomore Felipe Acosta and freshman Isaac Arevalo Gómez edged out a win at the No. 2 doubles spot, 6-4, against Santa Clara junior Vasileios Iliopoulos and freshman Arthur Neuhaus. USU freshman Rithvik Bollipalli and junior Sergiu Bucur lost, 7-5, at the No. 1 spot against SCU senior Andrew Gu and junior Jesus Barajas. Utah State junior Duro Opacic and freshman Daniel Bushamuka faced Santa Clara seniors Connor Garnett and Robert Seby at the No. 3 spot, and it was a tight battle throughout, but the Aggies secured the doubles point with a 7-6 (6) triumph.

In singles play, the first three Aggies to finish their respective matches all won, thus securing the victory. Arevalo Gómez picked up the first win, defeating Barajas, in a pair of 6-3 sets at the No. 1 spot. Bucur followed with a three-set win over Gu, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 in the No. 2 position. At the No. 3 spot, Acosta was forced to make a comeback as he lost his first set, 1-6, to Garnett. Acosta would prevail as he won the final two sets, 6-3, 6-4 to secure the victory. With the win clinched, the teams agreed to play out the remaining matches, with the No. 4 and five spot agreeing to play for the super-tiebreaker. Opacic fell to Iliopoulos 6-4, 1-0 (10-6) at the No. 4 spot, while Bollipall defeated Neauhaus, 2-6, 6-1, 1-0 (10-8) at the No. 5 spot. The final match went to Santa Clara, as freshman Mitch Johnson fell to Seby, 3-6, 4-6 at the No. 6 spot.

After a short break, the Aggies returned to the court with a hot start against the Bobcats. On court three, Opacic and Bushamuka took care of business, defeating MSU's Espinoza and Qvist with a 6-2 win. Acosta and Arevalo Gómez followed with a 6-2 victory of their own over Ceolin and Zelver at the No. 2 spot. Prior to the match, the teams agreed to play doubles to clinch, leaving the No. 2 doubles match unfinished. 

Arevalo Gómez was again the first singles player to finish his match, defeating senior Alexander Flink, 6-3, 6-0, at the No. 1 spot. Bollipalli then defeated Qvist in the No. 4 position, 6-3, 6-1, while Acosta earned the win and the match at the No. 3 spot against Espinoza, 6-4, 6-3 to clinch the match. With all other singles matches already underway, the teams agreed to keep play going, despite USU already earning the win. Bucur defeated Brown (6-7 (2), 4-1) on court two, due to a retirement from Brown, while Opacic beat Ceolin, in a pair of 6-3 sets at the No. 5 spot. The match wrapped up in the No. 6 spot, where Bushamuka won his first dual match of the season in a 6-2, 6-1 victory against Zelver.

"Sergiu (Bucur) also played very well, had the momentum and then had a little bit of a hiccup in the second set, but then got it back in the third set, "Wilson said. "Rithvik (Bollipalli) is really continuing to improve and that's good to see. We were able to keep building and hopefully, we'll keep improving. We know we have a lot of good teams ahead of us, and we have a lot of tennis left."

Next weekend, the Aggies head to Des Moines, Iowa for a trio of dual matches. Utah State will play at Drake on Friday, Feb. 15, at 5 p.m. (MT) and will play two neutral court matches against Indiana on Sunday, Feb. 17, at 11 a.m. (MT) and UC Santa Barbara on
Monday, Feb. 18, at 9 a.m. (MT).

Fans can follow USU's men's tennis team on Twitter @USUMensTennis, on Facebook at UtahStateMensTennis or on Instagram at USUTennis. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter at @USUAthletics, on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics or on Instagram at @USUAthletics.

RESULTS
Utah State 5, Santa Clara 2
Doubles
1. Andrew Gu/Jesus Barajas (SCU) def. Rithvik Bollipalli/Sergiu Bucur (USU) 7-5 
2. Felipe Acosta/Isaac Arevalo Gómez (USU) def. Vasileios Iliopoulos/Arthur Neuhaus (SCU) 6-4 
3. Duro Opacic/Daniel Bushamuka (USU) def. Connor Garnett/Robert Seby (SCU) 7-6 (8-6)

Singles
1. Isaac Arevalo Gómez (USU) def. Jesus Barajas (SCU) 6-3, 6-3 
2. Sergiu Bucur (USU) def. Andrew Gu (SCU) 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 
3. Felipe Acosta (USU) def. Connor Garnett (SCU) 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 
4. Vasileios Iliopoulos (SCU) def. Duro Opacic (USU) 6-4, 1-0 (10-6) 
5. Rithvik Bollipalli (USU) def. Arthur Neuhaus (SCU) 2-6, 6-1, 1-0 (10-8) 
6. Robert Seby (SCU) def. Mitch Johnson (USU) 6-3, 6-4

Match Notes: 
Santa Clara 4-2 
Utah State 5-3 
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (1,2,3,4,5,6)

Utah State 7, Montana State 0
Doubles
1. Rithvik Bollipalli/Sergiu Bucur (USU) vs. Drew Brown/Alexander Flink (MSU) 5-4, unfinished 
2. Felipe Acosta/Isaac Arevalo Gómez (USU) def. Mateus Ceolin/Marcos Zelver (MSU) 6-2 
3. Duro Opacic/Daniel Bushamuka (USU) def. Joaquin Espinoza/Christian Damgaard Qvist (MSU) 6-2

Singles
1. Isaac Arevalo Gómez (USU) def. Alexander Flink (MSU) 6-3, 6-0 
2. Sergiu Bucur (USU) def. Drew Brown (MSU) 6-7 (2-7), 4-1, retired 
3. Felipe Acosta (USU) def. Joaquin Espinoza (MSU) 6-4, 6-3 
4. Rithvik Bollipalli (USU) def. Christian Damgaard Qvist (MSU) 6-3, 6-1 
5. Duro Opacic (USU) def. Mateus Ceolin (MSU) 6-3, 6-3 
6. Daniel Bushamuka (USU) def. Marcos Zelver (MSU) 6-2, 6-1

Match Notes: 
Montana State 1-5 
Utah State 6-3 
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (1,4,3,2,5,6)

-USU-