SAN DIEGO -- After dropping the doubles point to a competitive University of San Diego team, the Sun Devil men's tennis team came back for a 4-3 win on Saturday afternoon at the Hogan Tennis Center.
ASU (4-3) fell behind early in doubles play as the Toreros held steady leads on courts one and three. Benjamin Hannestad and Tim Ruehl remained competitive on court two, tying their score up at 3-3 before suspending their game. Michaël Geerts and Makey Rakotomalala fell to USD first, 6-3, and the doubles pair of Thomas Wright and Andrea Bolla fell soon after by the same score, 6-3.
"The guys did a good job rebounding after losing the doubles point and refocusing on singles," coach Matt Hill said. "We had three guys take care of business and get off the court quickly, but we did have a couple tough matches where there were a lot of opportunities."
The Devils had their work cut out for them heading into singles play down 1-0. Needing a singles sweep to clinch the match, ASU stepped up in a big way on courts one, three, five and six. Hannestad led things off for the Devils, grabbing a 6-2, 6-3 win over Joel Gamerov. Gamerov is no stranger to the Devils, as Geerts faced off the Torero in the fall at the ITA Southwest Regional Championships in Malibu.
Wright and Ruehl also clutched up Devil wins to knot the match up at three apiece. It all came down to Geerts on court one, who battled back and forth with Gui Osario. Geerts came out on top this time, taking a tiebreaker first set and staking an easy 6-0 win in a decisive third set.
"Michaël really kicked things into gear and then ran away with the third set," Hill said. "The win is a huge step for the team, as it's our first road win. It was really exciting."
The Devils are back in action tomorrow afternoon in Malibu when they take on the Pepperdine Waves. Follow the action on @SunDevilMTennis, or watch the live stream here.
Arizona State (4-3, 0-0 Pac-12) – 4
San Diego (3-2, 0-0 WCC) – 3
Doubles Finishes:
Singles Finishes:
SUN DEVILS WIN! ???? Geerts clinches the winning point taking down Gui Osorio 7-5, 3-6, 6-0.
— Sun Devil M. Tennis (@SunDevilMTennis) February 17, 2018
Final score: 4-3 pic.twitter.com/s3ZWFIfXK9
ASU (4-3) fell behind early in doubles play as the Toreros held steady leads on courts one and three. Benjamin Hannestad and Tim Ruehl remained competitive on court two, tying their score up at 3-3 before suspending their game. Michaël Geerts and Makey Rakotomalala fell to USD first, 6-3, and the doubles pair of Thomas Wright and Andrea Bolla fell soon after by the same score, 6-3.
"The guys did a good job rebounding after losing the doubles point and refocusing on singles," coach Matt Hill said. "We had three guys take care of business and get off the court quickly, but we did have a couple tough matches where there were a lot of opportunities."
The Devils had their work cut out for them heading into singles play down 1-0. Needing a singles sweep to clinch the match, ASU stepped up in a big way on courts one, three, five and six. Hannestad led things off for the Devils, grabbing a 6-2, 6-3 win over Joel Gamerov. Gamerov is no stranger to the Devils, as Geerts faced off the Torero in the fall at the ITA Southwest Regional Championships in Malibu.
Benji defeats Gamuriou on Court 3 6-2, 6-3 pic.twitter.com/KHGHwnNLWS
— Sun Devil M. Tennis (@SunDevilMTennis) February 17, 2018
Wright and Ruehl also clutched up Devil wins to knot the match up at three apiece. It all came down to Geerts on court one, who battled back and forth with Gui Osario. Geerts came out on top this time, taking a tiebreaker first set and staking an easy 6-0 win in a decisive third set.
"Michaël really kicked things into gear and then ran away with the third set," Hill said. "The win is a huge step for the team, as it's our first road win. It was really exciting."
GEERTS WITH THE WIN!?? Down go the Toreros ?? pic.twitter.com/Gofdfxia4V
— Sun Devil M. Tennis (@SunDevilMTennis) February 17, 2018
The Devils are back in action tomorrow afternoon in Malibu when they take on the Pepperdine Waves. Follow the action on @SunDevilMTennis, or watch the live stream here.
Arizona State (4-3, 0-0 Pac-12) – 4
San Diego (3-2, 0-0 WCC) – 3
Doubles Finishes:
- Osorio/Borter (USD) def. Geerts/Rakotomalala (ASU), 6-3
- Gamerov/Holmgren (USD) vs. Hannestad/Ruehl (ASU), 5-3 susp.
- Araouzos/Keerasuntonpong (USD) def. Wright/Bolla (ASU), 6-3
Singles Finishes:
- Michaël Geerts (ASU) def. Gui Osario (USD) | 7-5, 3-6, 6-0
- August Holmgren (USD) def. Makey Rakotomalala (ASU) | 6-4, 6-2
- Benjamin Hannestad (ASU) def. Joel Gamerov (USD) | 6-2, 6-3
- Nico Borter (USD) def. Andrea Bolla (ASU) | 6-2, 7-6
- Tim Ruehl (ASU) def. David Norfeldt (USD) | 7-6, 6-2
- Tom Wright (ASU) def. Alexandros Araouzos (USD) | 6-4, 6-2