Feb. 26, 2006
SAN DIEGO - The 50th-ranked San Diego State men's tennis team suffered another narrow defeat, losing a hard-fought battle Sunday afternoon to the University of the Pacific, 4-3, at Aztec Tennis Center. The Aztecs dropped their third consecutive decision and saw their record slip to 3-4, while the Tigers improve to 8-2.
Things looked good for SDSU early on as it took two out of three matches in doubles competition. Junior Markus Dickhardt joined forces with senior Eugenio Romero at the No. 3 position to defeat the Tigers' duo of Alan Kelly and Austin Kakar, 8-3. The Aztecs then clinched the point when the No. 2 tandem of junior Christian Groh and senior Stephan Timu dispatched UOP's Arnar Sigurdsson and Tim Koniarski, 8-4.
SDSU carried that momentum into singles play, grabbing a 3-0 advantage after Timu and sophomore Robert Sabo each cruised to straight-set victories. The Tigers, however, fought back with wins at Nos. 4, 5 and 2 to knot the score at 3-3.
The decisive match featured a pair of nationally ranked players as No. 99 Markus Dickhardt engaged No. 79 Arnar Sigurdsson in an epic thriller on the No. 1 court. With the score deadlocked at one set apiece, Dickhardt forged a 3-0 lead in the third stanza and appeared to be in control. Sigurdsson clawed his way back, however, eventually forcing a tiebreaker.
After some closely contested points, Dickhardt ultimately succumbed, 6-7, 6-3, 7-6, giving Pacific just its second victory in the last seven meetings with the scarlet and black.
SDSU will return to action next weekend when it competes in the Pacific Coast Doubles tournament at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club, March 2-5. The Aztecs' next dual match is scheduled for March 14, when they play host to Yale at Aztec Tennis Center.
PACIFC 4, No. 50 SAN DIEGO STATE 3
Doubles:
1) Jorgen Vestli/Vladimir Zdravkovic (UOP) def. Benedikt Stronk/Billy Timu (SDSU), 8-6.
2) Christian Groh/Stephan Timu (SDSU) def. Arnar Sigurdsson/Tim Koniarski (UOP), 8-4.
3) Markus Dickhardt /Eugenio Romero (SDSU) def. Alan Kelly/Austin Kakar (UOP), 8-3.
SDSU wins doubles point
Singles:
1) No. 79 Arnar Sigurdsson (UOP) def. No. 99 Markus Dickhardt (SDSU), 6-7, 6-3, 7-6.
2) Jorgen Vestli (UOP) def. Benedikt Stronk (SDSU), 6-7, 6-3, 6-2.
3) Stephan Timu (SDSU) def. Vladimir Zdravkovic (UOP), 6-3, 6-3.
4) Tim Koniarski (UOP) def. Anthony Gomez (SDSU), 7-5, 6-2.
5) Alan Kelly (UOP) def. Eugenio Romero (SDSU), 6-4, 2-6, 6-1.
6) Robert Sabo (SDSU) def. Austin Kakar (UOP), 6-0, 6-2.
Order of finish: 6, 3, 4, 5, 2, 1*
*match-securing victory