PROVO, Utah – BYU men’s tennis fell 4-3 to in-state rival No. 37 Utah in a close match Saturday afternoon at the Eccles Tennis Center.
“This match today had all the drama that goes along with a rivalry match,” BYU head coach Brad Pearce said. “First of all, I give credit to Utah. They are having a good season and we are having a good season—it was a battle that went down to the last match. After winning the doubles point, we were immediately put on our heels, but we regrouped, we rallied, and we were in a position to win. I was extremely proud of the way our guys fought back today and gave us an opportunity to win. Good luck to Utah on the rest of their season.”
BYU (13-3) came out strong and won the doubles point against Utah (17-2). John Pearce and Ben Gajardo defeated Joe Woolley and Egbert Weverink 6-3 in the No. 2 slot. Securing the doubles point, undefeated duo Sean Hill and Jeffrey Hsu earned a 6-3 win over Russell Benkaim and Randy Cory in No. 1 doubles.
Moving into singles, Utah earned the first three wins with Little defeating Hsu 6-2, 7-5 in No. 2 singles, Woolley earning a 6-4, 6-4 win in No. 6 singles over David Ball and Santiago Sierra ending Gajardo’s winning streak 7-6, 6-3.
With BYU down 3-1, the Cougars battled and won the next two lines of singles. Tullis defeated Cory 7-6, 3-6, 6-2, while Hill came out on top against David Micevksi 4-6, 6-1, 7-5.
Tied at 3-all, the match came down to BYU’s Pearce versus Utah’s Weverink. In a three-set match, Weverink prevailed 7-6, 6-7, 7-5, giving Utah a 4-3 win.
BYU hosts UNLV Monday, March 26, at 1 p.m. MST at the Outdoor Tennis Courts, weather permitting.
Match Results
BYU 3, Utah 4
Doubles Results
- HILL, Sean/HSU, Jeffrey (BYU) def. BENKAIM, Russell/CORY, Randy (Utah) 6-3
- PEARCE, John/GAJARDO, Ben (BYU) def. WOOLLEY, Joe/WEVERINK, Egbert (Utah) 6-3
- LITTLE, Dan/HANKULIYEV, Azat (Utah) vs. TULLIS, Sam/BALL, David (BYU) 5-3 (DNF)
Order of finish: (2, 1)
Singles Results
- HILL, Sean (BYU) def. MICEVKSI, David (Utah) 4-6, 6-1, 7-5
- LITTLE, Dan (Utah) def. HSU, Jeffrey (BYU) 6-2, 7-5
- WEVERINK, Egbert (Utah) def. PEARCE, John (BYU) 7-6, 6-7, 7-5
- TULLIS, Sam (BYU) def. CORY, Randy (Utah) 7-6, 3-6, 6-2
- SIERRA, Santiago (Utah) def. GAJARDO, Ben (BYU) 7-6, 6-3
- WOOLLEY, Joe (Utah) def. BALL, David (BYU) 6-4, 6-4
Order of finish: (2, 6, 5, 4, 1, 3)
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