SAN DIEGO – San Diego State men’s tennis came up short against Idaho on Saturday afternoon, dropping its second consecutive match by a score of 4-3 at Lomas Santa Fe Country Club.
The Aztecs fall to 6-7 overall and the Vandals improve to 7-6.
The Aztecs started off strong, winning the doubles point despite playing without key players Mathieu Josserand and Marc Kleber.
Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice and Philipp Bosse captured the first win of the day, taking down Gabriel Moroder and Eric Wang 6-3 on court three.
Playing without his usual doubles partner, Alexander Mandma paired up with freshman Denis Maijorov on the top court. The duo clinched the doubles point with a 6-4 victory over Francisco Gay and Yu-Shun Lai.
Court two was left unfinished, tied 5-5 between Liam Spiers/Paul Janson and Chetanna Amadike/Sebastian Medica.
The Aztecs took a 1-0 advantage into singles play, but the Vandals quickly responded with three consecutive victories.
Moroder was the first to put a point on the board for Idaho. Freshman Louis Chusseau was bested 6-2, 6-4 on court five to even the score 1-1. In the second spot, Gonzalez Fitzmaurice fell short 6-3, 6-2 to Amadike, giving the Vandals the lead, which was extended by Gay, who took the top court 7-5, 6-3 over Bosse.
Finding themselves at a 3-1 deficit, the Aztecs fought their way back with wins on courts four and six.
In the fourth spot, Spiers earned a 6-3, 7-5 win over Lai while Janson rallied to a hard-fought 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) win over Wang.
Medica clinched the match for the Vandals, taking court three over Mandma by a score of 6-3, 7-5.
“Doubles was the bright spot of the day,” said Head Coach Gene Carswell. “Our new pairings responded well in the absence of [Mathieu] Josserand and [Marc] Kleber. Unfortunately, we didn’t take advantage of our lead, and to the Vandals’ credit, they clawed their way back into the match for a well-deserved win.”
Next up, San Diego State welcomes No. 12 Harvard to the Aztec Tennis Center for a 2 p.m. matchup on Tuesday.
Doubles
1. Alexander Mandma/Denis Maijorov (SDSU) def. Francisco Gay/Yu-Shun Lai (UI) 6-4
2. Liam Spiers/Paul Janson (SDSU) vs. Chetanna Amadike/Sebastian Medica (IU) DNF 5-5
3. Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice/Philipp Bosse (SDSU) def. Gabriel Moroder/Eric Wang (IU) 6-3
Singles
1. Francisco Gay (IU) def. Philipp Bosse (SDSU) 7-5, 6-3
2. Chetanna Amadike (IU) def. Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice (SDSU) 6-3, 6-2
3. Sebastian Medica (IU) def. Alexander Mandma (SDSU) 6-3, 7-5
4. Liam Spiers (SDSU) def. Yu-Shun Lai (IU) 6-3, 7-5
5. Gabriel Moroder (IU) def. Louis Chusseau (SDSU) 6-2, 6-4
6. Paul Janson (SDSU) def. Eric Wang (IU) 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4)
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (5,2,1,4,3,6)