COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — In the final non-conference match of the season, BYU men’s tennis extended its win streak to double-digit territory with a 5-2 win over Air Force Friday evening at the Air Force Tennis Courts.
The 10 straight victories is just one shy of equaling an 11-match run during the 2018-2019 campaign. The Cougars (11-3) have not lost since Jan. 26 at UC Irvine. BYU won the doubles point and matches at No. 1, 2, 3 and 4 singles.
“We came out strong from the beginning, which we knew we had to,” said BYU head coach Zack Warren. “The team was able to maintain that throughout the match. We had a lot of Cougar alumni and supporters who were in attendance, giving us a big boost as well. It’s always an honor playing at the Academy and we think so highly of Evan [Urbina] and his program. We’re looking forward to getting back to Provo for our Big 12 portion of the season. Go Cougs!”
Jack Barnett and Redd Owen joined Wally Thayne and Zach Fuchs in earning doubles victories. Each of the four also picked up singles wins.
Doubles
1. Wally Thayne/Zach Fuchs (BYU) def. Arjun Kersten/Jack Brown (Air Force) 6-2
2. Jack Barnett/Redd Owen (BYU) def. Phillip Deaton/Kyle Garner (Air Force) 6-3
3. TJ Wells/Tygen Goldammer (BYU) vs. AJ Moore/Tyler Leaird (Air Force) 4-4 (unfinished)
Order of finish: 1, 2
Thayne and Fuchs set the tone, winning four straight games on decisive net play after the score was knotted at 2-2. The doubles point was clinched by Barnett and Owen, who held serve in each game and notched a break on deuce point.
Tygen Goldammer and TJ Wells’ match on court three went unfinished at 4-4.
Singles
1. Jack Barnett (BYU) def. Phillip Deaton (Air Force) 6-2, 6-3
2. Wally Thayne (BYU) def. Arjun Kersten (Air Force) 6-0, 6-2
3. Zach Fuchs (BYU) def. AJ Moore (Air Force) 6-4, 6-2
4. Redd Owen (BYU) def. Jack Brown (Air Force) 6-4, 6-1
5. Alec Fritzinger (Air Force) def. Tygen Goldammer (BYU) 7-5, 3-0 (retired)
6. Kyle Garner (Air Force) def. David Duong (BYU) 6-4, 6-7 (4), 11-9
Order of finish: 2, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6
Thayne racked up BYU’s first singles point at the No. 2 slot with a near-flawless 6-0 first set performance. In set two, the junior broke Kersten’s serve with a backhand slice and approach to the net, applying pressure as Kersten returned the ball long. After dropping a deuce point with a 4-1 advantage, Thayne proceeded to win the next two games to cap off the match at 6-2.
Barnett continued the momentum at No. 1 singles, where he seized an early break on deuce point to go up 3-1. After holding serve, the senior scored another break to go up 5-1. During the set, he even tallied eight points in a row to contribute to a 6-2 win. Barnett earned separation once again with a break to make it 3-1 in set two, then holding serve on a slice that flew just over the net as his opponent rammed the ball into the net. He would go on to win 6-3.
Fuchs took a 4-2 lead in set one of No. 3 singles and held serve the rest of the way to earn the 6-4 set win. He trailed 30-15 in the final game, but turned up the intensity to win the next three points, including the set-clinching ace toward the center line. In set two, Fuchs went up 3-1 after earning a break and holding serve after a backhand approach nicked the baseline on Moore’s side and was returned out. A powerful overhead slam helped him steal another break before a pair of aces cemented a 6-2 win.
Owen went up 3-1 in set one on court four before Browne trimmed the lead to 4-3. Up 5-4, the sophomore seized a pivotal break to win 6-4. The set included two deuce points. He then forced Brown to both sides of the court on a baseline rally before Brown’s attempted drop shot fell short to take a 2-1 second set advantage. Owen went on to win the remaining games for a 6-1 victory.
The remaining singles matches included freshmen Tygen Goldammer and David Duong on courts five and six. After Goldammer went up 2-0, opponent Alec Fritzinger got a break. Both then held serves before the freshman found himself down 5-6 and serving. Trailing 40-30, Goldammer dropped the set 5-7. He then retired after falling behind 3-0 in the second set.
After dropping the first set 4-6, Duong rebounded to take a 5-4 advantage in the second set after a dominant game with no points lost. The set eventually went to a tiebreaker, with Duong carving out a 7-4 win after his opponent’s backhand slice at the baseline flew into the net. In a deciding 10-point tiebreaker in place of the third set, Duong went up 8-3 before falling 9-11.
Up Next
The Cougars now turn their attention to Big 12 play with nearly two weeks to prepare. In what will be the first of four consecutive home conference matches, BYU is slated to take on No. 26 Oklahoma State on Thursday, March 21 at 5 p.m. MDT. Follow along with live stats or on the live stream.