February 18, 2015

Men's Tennis Cruises to 6-1 Win over UTPA

CORPUS CHRISTI – The Texas A&M - Corpus Christi men's tennis team breezed to a 6-1 victory today over Texas-Pan American at the Thomas J. Henry Tennis Center. The Islanders snapped a string of three road losses to improve to 4-3 on the year, including 3-0 at home.

"It was good to get back home and play outdoor tennis," Director of Tennis Steve Moore said. "I thought the guys came out today with a real edge to them about competing like warriors and they should have because we had just lost three in a row. We needed to make a statement with our intensity, tenacity and grit.

"The most important thing for this team is to understand who we are, what we stand for and be accountable to bring that every point, every guy, every match. We have a lot of work to do but a strong character group that is committed to that hard work."

The Islanders jumped out to a strong start against the Broncs (2-4) with wins on courts two and three of doubles play to take an early 1-0 lead. Juniors Javier Pujol and Ricardo Mayagoitia took care of business early with a sweeping 6-0 win over Ethan Ammon and Nikola Crvelin at No. 3 doubles to improve to 2-1 on the year. Sophomore Kevin Bettendroffer and junior Guillaume Rauseo teamed up for the first time in dual-match play this season and secured a 6-4 win over Miguel Alvarez-Hevia and Hector Ramirez in a close back-and-forth battle at No. 2 doubles to clinch the point. When the doubles point was determined, senior Peter Nagy and freshman Arthur Bedel were even with UTPA's Juan Cruz Soria and Koby Jansen at 5-5 at No. 1 doubles.

The Islanders quickly padded their lead to 2-0 after Rauseo downed Alvarez-Hevia, 6-0, 6-0, in No. 4 singles. Nagy then followed suit with his fifth consecutive dual-match singles win at No. 1 to improve to 5-0 on the year. The senior cruised to a 6-2 first-set win before topping Ramirez 6-1 in the second set to give the Islanders a 3-0 lead. Pujol followed quickly after with a 6-1, 6-1 straight-set victory over Crvelin to clinch the match for the Islanders at No. 5 singles.

A&M - Corpus Christi kept the match rolling in its favor as Bedel and Bettendroffer finished with back-to-back wins to make it a six-point cushion for the Islanders. After falling behind 4-1 in the first set, Bettendroffer rallied back to capture the first set 6-4 over Cruz Soria at No. 2 singles. In the second set, the sophomore powered his way to a 6-0 win for the Islanders' fifth point of the match. Bedel, in his second career match at No. 6 singles, took care of business with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Ammon for his second career win.

In the final singles match of the day, Mayagoitia battled Jansen in the No. 3 slot. The junior picked up the first set 6-4, before falling 6-4 in the second and 10-2 in the super-tiebreaker.

The men's team will return to action on Tuesday, March 3, at 3 p.m., when they host Prairie View A&M. The women's team will take on former Southland member UTSA tomorrow at the Thomas J. Henry Tennis Center at 2 p.m.

For all the latest on Islanders Tennis, like the team on Facebook (IslandersTennis) and follow them on Twitter and Instagram (@IslandersTennis).

Tennis Match Results

Texas-Pan American vs. Texas A&M - Corpus Christi

2/18/2015 at Corpus Christi, Texas

Texas A&M - Corpus Christi 6, Texas-Pan American 1

Singles competition

1. Peter Nagy (AMCC) def. Hector Ramirez (UTPA) 6-2, 6-1

2. Kevin Bettendroffer (AMCC) def. Juan Cruz Soria (UTPA) 6-4, 6-0

3. Koby Jansen (UTPA) def. Ricardo Mayagoitia (AMCC) 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-2)

4. Guillaume Rauseo (AMCC) def. Miguel Alvarez-Hevia (UTPA) 6-0, 6-0

5. Javier Pujol (AMCC) def. Nikola Crvelin (UTPA) 6-1, 6-1

6. Arthur Bedel (AMCC) def. Ethan Ammon (UTPA) 6-0, 6-2