Tough Play Against No. 7 Stanford

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STANFORD -- In the third of its four road matches this week, the BYU men's tennis team impressed the No. 7 Stanford Cardinal at Taube Tennis Center today losing in a tight 6-1 decision.

"Stanford has won more national titles than any other school in the country," head coach Brad Pearce said. "It's great to play such high-ranked teams. Our guys showed a lot of heart and really gave them a run for their money today. It's a good experience for our team."

Posting a huge win for the Cougars was Senior Erik Nyman as he upset Stanford's top seed Sam Warburg 4-6, 7-5, (12-10), who beat No. 1 ranked Benedikt Dorsch of Baylor on Monday in a three-set battle. Nyman came back from five match points in the tiebreaker to push past Warburg.

Despite the aggressive play by all three BYU doubles duos, the Cardinal prevailed at all three spots eventually winning the doubles point. All three Cougar doubles teams gained valuable experience from today's competition.

"This trip has been very challenging on our guys so far, but they have stuck with it and competed well," Pearce said. "Based on our level of intensity the last couple of days, I feel pretty confident about our match tomorrow against California. "We'll get some rest tonight and play hard again tomorrow."

Pearce said the final score of today's match does not really reflect how hard the BYU men actually competed. Playing on the road, in Stanford, is always tough, Pearce said.

The Cougars will face the Bears of California tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. in Berkeley, Calif.

BYU 1, Stanford 6

Doubles:

Warburg/ Corkery (S) def. Nyman/ Roshan (BYU) 8-2

Sheng/ Morris (S) def. Dasek/ Kaufhold (BYU) 8-1

Rasmussen/Wong (S) def. Hand/Medina (BYU) 8-3

Stanford won the doubles point

Singles:

Erik Nyman (BYU) def. Sam Warburg (S) 4-6, 7-5 (12-10)

KC Corkery (S) def. Chip Hand (BYU) 6-2, 6-1

Phil Sheng (S) def. Ivan Kokurin (BYU) 6-2, 6-3

Jon Wong (S) def. Nima Roshan (BYU) 6-1, 6-4

Carter Morris (S) def. Alonzo Medina (BYU) 6-4, 7-5 (10-3)

Chris Rasmussen (S) def. Dominik Kaufhold (BYU) 6-3, 6-1