Provo, Utah - BYU men’s tennis notched a 7-0 home victory over Montana State on Saturday, claiming a sweep for the second match in a row to improve to 3-3 on the year.
“We’re building confidence from match to match,” said BYU men’s tennis assistant coach Jonathan Sanchez. “Everyone is starting to play some of their best tennis, but we haven’t peaked yet and we are building, which is great."
The Cougars earned wins in straight sets for every singles match. With the wins across the board, No. 35-ranked doubles squad Wally Thayne and Zach Fuchs improved to 4-1 on the season as Thayne and Redd Owen lead the team in singles winning percentage at 5-1 (.833) apiece.
The Bobcats entered the match 4-0 after having only lost one team point in their first four matches combined.
Doubles
1. No. 35 Wally Thayne/Zach Fuchs (BYU) vs. Max Relic/Andras Necz (MSU) 6-5 (unfinished)
2. Jack Barnett/Redd Owen (BYU) def. Andre Stewart/Rayen Hermassi (MSU) 6-3
3. Tygen Goldammer/TJ Wells (BYU) def. Dario Ciobotaru/Kanika Jayathilake (MSU) 7-6 (3)
Order of finish: 2, 3
Jack Barnett and Owen registered a break and held serve to jump out to a 5-2 lead on court two. With a 5-3 advantage and Barnett serving at 40-30, Montana State hit it long as the Cougar pair improved to 4-2 together on the year.
At No. 3 doubles, both teams held serve in the first several games as the freshmen pair found themselves down 5-4 with TJ Wells serving. Despite trailing 40-30, Tygen Goldammer’s strong net play and a powerful serve from Wells made it 5-5. The Bobcats then held serve before the Cougars forced a tiebreaker. BYU took control early, earning a decisive 7-3 victory to clinch the doubles point for BYU.
Trailing 4-5, Thayne hit a left side winner near the service line before formidable serves from Fuchs tied things up at 5 apiece. The combo then earned a break on deuce point as their opponent hit the ball into the net. Up 6-5 and 30-0 with Thayne serving, the match went unfinished due to BYU’s No. 3 doubles win.
Singles
1. Jack Barnett (BYU) def. Max Relic (MSU) 6-3, 3-0 (retired)
2. Wally Thayne (BYU) def. Dario Ciobotaru (MSU) 6-0, 6-2
3. Zach Fuchs (BYU) def. Andre Stewart (MSU) 6-3, 6-2
4. Redd Owen (BYU) def. Andras Necz (MSU) 7-5, 6-4
5. Tygen Goldammer (BYU) def. Rayen Hermassi (MSU) 6-3, 6-3
6. David Duong (BYU) def. Jacob Huppin (MSU) 6-3, 6-2
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
On court one, Barnett earned separation when he recorded a break to go up 5-3. He won the final game of the set on his serve without losing a point. In the second set, he got a break in the first game. Up 2-0 later, he jumped out to a 40-15 lead before his opponent double faulted. Immediately after, his opponent retired.
Shortly after, BYU went up 3-0 with a win on court two. Thayne began singles play with a dominant first set, dropping just a few points en route to a 6-0 win. Bobcat Dario Ciobotaru held serve a couple of times in the second set, but it wasn’t enough as Thayne continued to put pressure on his opponent and cruise to a 6-2 victory.
“Wally played unreal,” Sanchez said. “He played an unbelievable first set. He maintained his composure, his focus, and just rode out that second set for a smooth win at [No. 2 singles], which was important. That built confidence on the other courts too.”
At No. 3 singles, Fuchs went up 4-2 in the first set. An overhead slam gave him a 5-2 lead before he went on to win 6-3. With his opponent serving first in the second set, Fuchs went up 40-30 and won a battle at the net for a break. After another break, he won on his serve without losing a point to go up 4-0. Later, up 5-2, Fuchs had two aces, including the match clincher to claim his third singles victory on the year.
Court four saw lengthy baseline rallies between Owen and Andras Necz. Neither got a break before Owen to claim a 6-5 first set lead. The sophomore then went up 30-0 before winning the set. In game one of the second set, Owen got another break before dropping two straight games. Later at 3-3 and Necz serving, Owen won the game on a backhand winner down the line. Both traded breaks to make it 5-4 for Owen closed things out with an ace.
Next, Goldammer earned a 6-3, 6-3 straight sets victory at No. 5 singles to notch his third singles win on the year. Down 3-2, he earned a break to set up a dominant game where he imposed his will at the net to go up 5-2. Up 5-3 later, he remained steady in long rallies to force opponent errors and claim the first set. In the second set, he was tied at 3-3 before he got two breaks and held serve to earn the victory.
Freshman David Duong won with strong ground strokes and consistent serving, going up 5-3. He didn’t drop a point in the final game of the set, nailing an ace to cap it off. In the second set, he recorded a break to go up 3-0. He then went up 5-2 and served his way to a win while losing only one point in the game, taking the match 6-3, 6-2.
The Cougars are back in action next week, traveling to California for a doubleheader match at UC Riverside on Friday, Feb. 9. The first match will begin at 11 a.m. MST followed by the 3 p.m. MST doubleheader.