SPOKANE, Wash. - In the first of two official home matches, Eastern Washington men's tennis dropped the opening weekend match close to home. Eastern fell to Northern Arizona, 6-1, playing at the Stevens Center in Spokane. After winning the doubles point to take an early lead, the Lumberjacks swept the singles to remain undefeated in Big Sky play. EWU's record falls to 1-3 in conference and 4-14 overall. NAU improves 5-0 in the Big Sky and 12-8 for the season.
"My guys were able to play doubles, which was great because we came out really strong, with great intensity and energy. We really took it to them at No. 1 and 3. I'm really happy and pleased with our doubles play," head coach Dustin Hinson described. "Then I just thought, we really carried over the intensity to singles from start to finish. There was no quit in the guys and they just fought. I was really proud of what each one brought to the court. I told them after the match; that is the kind of mentality you want them to have to to go in there and believe in themselves."
The Eagles were clicking to start the match, winning two-of-three doubles matches. At the No. 1 spot, Tyler Waddock and Tyler Dalos joined up for a 6-2 win over Jakub Prachar and Jakub Volesky. Caden Kammerer and Brady Thomas then secured the point at No. 3, winning 6-3 over Semen Agynskyy and Takumi Katsuda.
Moving to singles, Drew Dillon went three sets at the No. 2 position against Piotr Galus. Dillon won 7-5 in the opening set, but Galus clamped down with wins in the next two sets (6-0, 6-2). At the No. 3 spot, Kammerer took Agynskyy to the edge in set one, 7-5, but could not keep up in the second set, 6-2.
Hinson continued his praise of the team's effort on Friday, "They really showed that on the court and I think they competed really well against a top-team in the conference. We really made [NAU] play and made them have to fight to get those singles wins, which I was proud of our guys for accomplishing. We're looking forward to tomorrow's match at home and on the outdoor courts. The team will bring the same kind of intensity."
Up Next
Eastern Washington gets to play in Cheney tomorrow as they host Weber State at 10 a.m. from the EWU Tennis Courts, weather permitting.
Doubles
No. 1 Tyler Waddock / Tyler Dalos (EWU) def. Jakub Prachar / Jakub Volesky (NAU) 6-2
No. 2 Dani Torres / Piotr Galus (NAU) def. Arshjot Bhatti / Drew Dillon (EWU) 6-1
No. 3 Caden Kammerer / Brady Thomas (EWU) def. Semen Agynskyy / Takumi Katsuda (NAU) 6-3
Singles
No. 1 Dani Torres (NAU) def. Tyler Dalos (EWU) 6-3, 6-4
No. 2 Piotr Galus (NAU) def. Drew Dillon (EWU) 5-7, 6-0, 6-2
No. 3 Semen Agynskyy (NAU) def. Caden Kammerer (EWU) 7-5, 6-2
No. 4 Jakub Volesky (NAU) def. Arshjot Bhatti (EWU) 6-4, 6-4
No. 5 Mateusz Lange (NAU) def. Brady Thomas (EWU) 6-2, 6-0
No. 6 Kai Mills (NAU) def. No player default
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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