ORLANDO, Fla. – No. 7 Fordham cruised past 10th-seeded Saint Louis in the first round of the 2019 Atlantic 10 Men’s Tennis Championship at the USTA National Campus Thursday.
The Rams advance to face No. 2 Richmond Friday at noon.
Fordham won the doubles point by recording a pair of 6-2 wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. First Lutwin de Macar and Alex Makatsaria beat Pavel Badaiants and John Paul McKenzie of SLU at No. 3 doubles. That was followed by a win at No. 2 doubles by Max Green and Finn Kemper over Oscar Pachon and Ignacio Tintore.
It was the bottom three flights that captured the singles matches and gave the Rams the victory. Makatsaria beat Tintore at No. 5 singles, 6-1, 6-1, followed by a victory at No. 6 singles by Jofre Segarra, who beat McKenzie, 6-2, 6-2. De Macar closed out the Fordham win with a 6-4, 6-0 win over Badaiants at No. 4 singles, 6-4, 6-0
MATCH #4
#7 FORDHAM def. #10 SAINT LOUIS, 4-0
SINGLES
1. Justin Nogalski (SLU) vs. Fabian Mauritzson (FOR) 7-5, 0-2, DNF
2. Max Green (FOR) vs. Oscar Pachon (SLU) 7-5, DNF
3. Finn Kemper (FOR) vs. Kenji Yanaba (SLU) 2-6, 5-3, DNF
4. Lutwin de Macar (FOR) def. Pavel Badaiants (SLU) 6-4, 6-0
5. Alex Makatsaria (FOR) def. Ignacio Tintore (SLU) 6-1, 6-1
6. Jofre Segarra (FOR) def. John Paul McKenzie (SLU) 6-2, 6-2
Order of Finish: 5, 6, 4
DOUBLES
1. Justin Nogalski/Kenji Yanaba (SLU) vs. Fabian Mauritzson/Allen Thorns (FOR) 5-2, DNF
2. Max Green/Finn Kemper (FOR) def. Oscar Pachon/Ignacio Tintore (SLU) 6-2
3. Lutwin de Macar/Alex Makatsaria (FOR) def. Pavel Badaiants/John Paul McKenzie (SLU) 6-2
Order of Finish: 3, 2
ORLANDO - The eleventh-seeded La Salle Explorers recorded its first-ever Atlantic 10 Championship victory with a 4-2 upset over sixth-seeded George Mason on Thursday at the USTA National Campus.
The Explorers struck first in doubles play, netting victories at the top two spots. Francesco Mowrey and Nassim Fenjiro netted a 6-4 victory in the top flight, before Mason's pair of Giuliano Buzoianu and Eddie Ayers completed their No. 3 match, 6-2, to even the score. Rogelio Gonzalez clinched the doubles point with Connor Merrill in thrilling fashion, 7-6, to give the Explorers the 1-0 lead.
In singles play, Mason bounced back as Buzoianu and Ryan Charles each completed straight-set victories at No. 5 and No. 4, respectively, to put the Patriots back on top, 2-1. Needing a tiebreaker in the second set, Nassim Fenjiro defeated Jakob Nielsen, 6-3, 7-6, to again knot the match.
Court No. 2 went to three sets with La Salle's Rogelio Gonzalez taking the final two sets from Pally Ray, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 for a 3-2 match lead. Colin Lucius also rebounded from a first-set loss to clinch the match with a tiebreak in the third set, sending the Explorers to its first quarterfinal appearance.
With the win, La Salle will face No. 3 Davidson on Friday at Noon.
MATCH #3
#11 LA SALLE def. #6 GEORGE MASON, 4-2
SINGLES
1. Eddie Ayers (MASON) vs. Francesco Mowrey (LAS) 7-5, 5-6, DNF
2. Rogelio Gonzalez (LAS) def. Pally Ray (MASON) 3-6, 6-2, 6-1
3. Nassim Fenjiro (LAS) def. Jakob Nielsen (MASON) 6-3, 7-6
4. Ryan Charles (MASON) def. Connor Merrill (LAS) 6-4, 6-2
5. Giuliano Buzoianu (MASON) def. Patrick Pascual (LAS) 6-1, 6-2
6. Colin Lucius (LAS) def. Erick Rivas (MASON) 0-6, 6-3, 7-5
Order of Finish: 5, 4, 3, 2, 6
DOUBLES
1. Francesco Mowrey/Nassim Fenjiro (LAS) def. Pally Ray/Ryan Charles (MASON) 6-4
2. Rogelio Gonzalez/Connor Merrill (LAS) def. Jakob Nielsen/Erick Rivas (MASON) 7-6
3. Giuliano Buzoianu/ Eddie Ayers (MASON) def. Colin Lucius/Andrija Bozovic (LAS) 6-2
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2