LOGAN, Utah – Utah State men's tennis (10-4, 0-0 MW) posted a 6-1 home win against Denver (5-4, 1-0 Summit) on Friday afternoon at the Sports Academy & Racquet Club.
"To beat a quality team like this was a very good performance," said head coach James Wilson. "Isaac's (Arevalo Gómez) performance really stands out and it was a tough win for him. I thought Felipe (Acosta) winning easily like he did was really great for our momentum. Our guys at five and six (Rithvik Bollipalli and Duro Opacic) also did a very good job. It was a good overall performance and a good win for us."
USU won the doubles point after a pair of 7-5 victories from freshman Rithvik Bollipalli and junior Sergiu Bucur at the No. 2 spot, and junior Duro Opacic and sophomore Felipe Acosta at the No. 3 spot.
In singles play, Acosta cruised to a 6-2, 6-0 win on court four, while sophomore Jose Carvajal won at the No. 3 spot, 7-6 (4), 6-3 to make it a 3-0 contest. After Bucur lost his set at the No. 2 spot, Bollipalli clinched the match at the No. 5 spot with a straight-set 6-3, 6-0 victory.
With all other matches complete, both teams agreed to continue play. Arevalo played at the No. 1 spot and won his first set, 6-3, but lost the second set, 6-4. It came down to a tiebreak at the third set, but Arevalo captured a highly competitive 7-6 (2) win. Opacic closed the match with a solid 6-2, 6-1 win at the No. 6 spot.
"It was a really important match because I started the first set down a break and came back to win it," said Arevalo. "I was pushing through and I held my serve every time. I was just playing my tennis and playing to win. That was the key, I was positive and mentally tough."
The Aggies will have a two-week break before heading to UNLV (8-1) on Friday, March 15, at 5 p.m. (MT).
Fans can follow USU's Men's tennis team on Twitter @USUMensTennis, on Facebook at UtahStateMensTennis or on Instagram @USUMensTennis. 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 6, Denver 1
Doubles
1. James Davis/Matt Summers (DEN) def. Isaac Arevalo Gómez/Jose Carvajal (USU) 7-5
2. Rithvik Bollipalli/Sergiu Bucur (USU) def. Mattia Ros/Pedro F. Del Valle (DEN) 7-5
3. Duro Opacic/Felipe Acosta (USU) def. Daniel Krulig/Eric Morris (DEN) 7-5
Singles
1. Isaac Arevalo Gómez (USU) def. Matt Summers (DEN) 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (2)
2. Mattia Ros (DEN) def. Sergiu Bucur (USU) 6-4, 7-6 (5)
3. Jose Carvajal (USU) def. Pedro F. Del Valle (DEN) 7-6 (4), 6-3
4. Felipe Acosta (USU) def. James Davis (DEN) 6-2, 6-0
5. Rithvik Bollipalli (USU) def. Ignatius Castelino (DEN) 6-3, 6-0
6. Duro Opacic (USU) def. Daniel Krulig (DEN) 6-2, 6-1
Match Notes:
Denver 5-4
Utah State 10-4
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (4,3,2,5,1,6)
-USU-
