Men’s Tennis Splits Two in Orlando

Saturday, January 19

Orlando, Fla.

9:00 AM

Florida Atlantic

UNCW

Photo by: JC Ridley/Owlpix.com

1/19/2019 8:12:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 FAU 4, UNCW 3 BYU 4, FAU 2

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University men's tennis team picked up a win and a loss during their short stay at the USTA National Campus Collegiate Series on Saturday. The Owls (3-2) came from behind to top UNCW 4-3, and fell in the second match, 4-2 to BYU.

Notables:

Though UNCW picked up two doubles wins for the first point of the match, the duo of Thomas Guy and Mehdi Laalej took the No. 3 matchup, 6-3
Laalej (No. 4 singles) and Ignacio Garcia (No. 5) picked up straight set victories. Laalej came out on top 7-5, 6-1, while Garcia breezed to a 6-0, 6-1 win
At No. 2, Kirac Bekisoglu came back from down a set to win, 5-7, 6-2, 6-0
The clinching point came in the No. 6 draw, with Alvaro Fernandez Horta giving the Owls the team win at 6-3, 5-7, 7-5
Later on Saturday, BYU also went ahead on doubles. FAU's Guy/Laalej pairing was still on the court and tied as the other two wrapped up
Singles victories for the Owls against the Cougars came at No. 3, with Gabriel Sidney going over, 6-3, 6-4, and Garcia again at No. 5, 7-5, 6-2

Quotable:
Head Coach Ricardo Gonzalez
"Proud of the way our team competed all day. Today was a tough challenge playing two very good teams in one day. We left it all out there in both matches.

"Today we gained a lot as a team. Today we became more united. Today we gained toughness. Today we gained grit. Today we learned how to fight for each other a bit more. Today we gained belief. Because of today, we will become a better team throughout the season.

"Both UNCW and BYU have great teams and it was fun to battle and get tested early in the season."

Full Results:
FAU 4, UNCW 3
Doubles

1. Michael Copeland/Cole Groetsch (UNCW) def. Jason Legall/Ignacio Garcia (FAU) 7-6 (7-3)
2. Bruno Caula/Michael Morphy (UNCW) def. Kirac Bekisoglu/Gabriel Sidney (FAU) 7-5
3. Mehdi Laalej/Thomas Guy (FAU) def. Agustin Savarino/Leo Sprovieri (UNCW) 6-3

Singles

1. Agustin Savarino (UNCW) def. Jason Legall (FAU) 6-2, 6-3
2. Kirac Bekisoglu (FAU) def. Michael Copeland (UNCW) 5-7, 6-2, 6-0
3. Daniel Groom (UNCW) def. Gabriel Sidney (FAU) 6-3, 1-6, 6-4
4. Mehdi Laalej (FAU) def. Bruno Caula (UNCW) 7-5, 6-1
5. Ignacio Garcia (FAU) def. Leo Sprovieri (UNCW) 6-0, 6-1
6. Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Davide Innocenti (UNCW) 6-3, 5-7, 7-5

BYU 4, FAU 2
Doubles

1. Sean Hill/Jeffrey Hsu (BYU) def. Jason Legall/Ignacio Garcia (FAU) 6-4
2. Sam Tullis/Ben Gajardo (BYU) def. Kirac Bekisoglu/Gabriel Sidney (FAU) 6-4
3. Thomas Guy/Mehdi Laalej (FAU) vs. Mateo Vereau/Matthew Pearce (BYU) 5-5, unfinished

Singles

1. Sean Hill (BYU) def. Jason Legall (FAU) 4-6, 6-1, 6-0
2. Jeffrey Hsu (BYU) def. Kirac Bekisoglu (FAU) 6-4, 6-1
3. Gabriel Sidney (FAU) def. Mateo Vereau (BYU) 6-3, 6-4
4. Mehdi Laalej (FAU) vs. Sam Tullis (BYU) 3-6, 6-1, 1-1, unfinished
5. Ignacio Garcia (FAU) def. Ben Gajardo (BYU) 7-5, 6-2
6. Matthew Pearce (BYU) def. A. Fernandez Horta (FAU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-1

What's Next:
The Owls take on Miami in Coral Gables on Monday morning, beginning at 11 a.m. The math will be shown live on ACC Network Extra for authenticated users through ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app, and will also feature live stats.