Feb. 6, 2008
TEMPE, Ariz. - The San Diego State men's tennis team lost its second straight match on Wednesday, falling to No. 44 Arizona State, 7-0, at Whiteman Tennis Center in Tempe, Ariz. The Sun Devils (1-0) emerged victorious in their belated season opener by taking two out of three doubles matches and then sweeping all six singles encounters to drop the 49th-ranked Aztecs to 1-2 on the year.
With a flu-ravaged squad making the trek eastward, SDSU head coach Gene Carswell shuffled his lineup somewhat against ASU, which unfortunately yielded minimal results. In doubles competition, sophomore Achim Ceban (Moscow, Russia) combined with fellow classmate Juan Gomez (Guyaquil, Ecuador) for a thrilling 9-8(5) triumph over the Matt Brooklyn and T.J. Bellama on the No. 1 court, but by then the Sun Devils had already grabbed an early 1-0 lead with wins at Nos. 2 and 3. At the third spot, sophomore Jordan Colman (Palm Desert, Calif.), made his Scarlet and Black debut by teaming with freshman Andre Feliz (San Gabriel, Calif.), but the Aztec duo was dealt an 8-5 defeat at the hands of Andres Arango and Juan Carlos Rebaza.
Victory proved to even more elusive in singles play as San Diego State lost four of six matches in straight sets. Freshman Danny Heidecker (Wesel, Germany) was the first to experience ASU's wrath after a 6-3, 6-0 setback to Arango at the No. 2 position. Rebaza then dispatched Feliz, 6-3, 6-2, in the third spot, while Brooklyn provided the clinching point for the home team with a 6-3, 6-3 decision over Ceban at center court.
The remaining three matches were closely contested affairs; however, the Aztecs were unable to break into the win column and avoid the shutout. Despite an early lead, Gomez ran out of gas against Wes Miller at No. 4, dropping the final two sets en route to a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 defeat. Sophomore Michael Beron (San Diego, Calif.) battled Bellama in his dual-match debut of the 2008 season, but came out on the short end of a 7-6(5), 7-6(4) nail-biter in the fifth position. Freshman Tim Schulz van Endert (Berlin, Germany) also fought tooth-and-nail against John Nanosky at No. 6, but eventually succumbed in three sets, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4.
SDSU will return to the Grand Canyon State for a pair of matches next week when it travels to Tucson, Ariz., to face Big Ten foe Minnesota and Arizona of the Pac-10. The Aztecs will square off against the Golden Gophers in a neutral-site clash on Feb. 16, before tangling with the Wildcats two days later on Feb. 18. Both contests are slated for a 1:30 p.m. MT start.
No. 44 ARIZONA STATE 7, No. 49 SAN DIEGO STATE 0
Whiteman Tennis Center
Tempe, Ariz.
Doubles
1. Achim Ceban / Juan Gomez (SDSU) def. T.J. Bellama / Matt Brooklyn (ASU), 9-8(5)
2. Wes Miller / John Nanosky (ASU) def. Danny Heidecker / Tim Schulz van Endert (SDSU), 8-4
3. Andres Arango / Juan Carlos Rebaza (ASU) def. Jordan Colman / Andre Feliz (SDSU), 8-5
Arizona State wins doubles point
Singles
1. Matt Brooklyn (ASU) def. Achim Ceban (SDSU), 6-3, 6-3
2. Andres Arango (ASU) def. Danny Heidecker (SDSU), 6-3, 6-0
3. Juan Carlos Rebaza (ASU) def. Andre Feliz (SDSU), 6-3, 6-2
4. Wes Miller (ASU) def. Juan Gomez (SDSU), 2-6, 6-4, 6-3
5. T.J. Bellama (ASU) def. Michael Beron (SDSU), 7-6(5), 7-6(4)
6. John Nanosky (ASU) def. Tim Schulz van Endert (SDSU), 7-5, 4-6, 6-4
Order of finish
Doubles: 2, 3, 1
Singles: 2, 3, 1*, 4, 5, 6
*match-clinching victory