SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State men's tennis played its spring season opener against Brigham Young at the Aztec Tennis Center on Thursday. The Aztecs claimed an early lead by taking the doubles point and held on by winning three singles matches to earn a 4-3 victory over the Cougars. SDSU clinched victory with a 4-2 lead, but the teams decided to close it out on court three to finish with the 4-3 result.
The Scarlet and Black improve to 1-0 while the Cougars drop to 0-1.
"This was a quality win over a Power Five opponent," said Head Coach Gene Carswell following the victory. "Robin Parts did a great job earning his first dual match win as an Aztec. Beating the No. 35-ranked doubles team in the nation and earning a singles win in a close match was quite a way for him to kick off his Aztec career."
In doubles, Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice and Bora Sengul teamed up on the third court. They beat TJ Wells and Tygen Goldammer by the score of 6-4. On the top court, Alexander Mandma and newcomer Parts faced a tough draw in the No. 35-ranked doubles duo of Wally Thayne and Zach Fuchs. It was a close match with the Aztecs hanging on to win 7-5. On court No. 2, Chikaya Sato and Johannes Seeman went up against Jack Barnett and Redd Owen. They came back from down 5-3 to even the score at five but could not complete the comeback, falling 7-5.
In singles, on court No. 2, Sato dueled Wally Thayne. He began his season with a straight sets victory, winning 6-4, 7-5.
Making his SDSU dual debut, Parts battled TJ Wells on court five. Parts came out on top in a tight first set 7-5 and closed things out with a 6-4 win in the second set.
Mandma played Tygen Goldammer on the sixth court. He dropped the first set 6-3 but bounced back to take the second 6-2 and won by the same score in the deciding set to clinch an Aztec victory.
On the top court, Seeman fell in straight sets to Jack Barnett, 6-3, 6-1.
Entering with a five-match dual win streak, Gonzalez Fitzmaurice faced Redd Owen. He fell in the first set 6-2. Gonzalez Fitzmaurice kept things close in the second set but was dropped 6-4.
In his singles match, Sengul took the first set 6-3 over Zach Fuchs and looked to close out a win in the second but came up just shy 7-5. The Aztecs clinched a win before his match was completed but the two still completed play. The even battle went to a third set tiebreaker, but Fuchs emerged victorious, 7-6 (5).
San Diego State is sending Gonzalez Fitzmaurice, Liam Spiers, Andre Saleh and Mathieu Josserand to the National Collegiate Tennis Classic in Palm Desert, Calif., this weekend. The next team competition is a doubleheader against Loyola Marymount and Sacramento State on Sunday, January 21 at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., respectively, at the Aztec Tennis Center.
San Diego State 4, Brigham Young 3
Aztec Tennis Center – San Diego, Calif.
January 11, 2024
Singles Competition
1. Jack Barnett (BYU) def. Johannes Seeman (SDSU) 6-3, 6-1
2. Chikaya Sato (SDSU) def. Wally Thayne (BYU) 6-4, 7-5
3. Zach Fuchs (BYU) def. Bora Sengul (SDSU) 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5)
4. Redd Owen (BYU) def. Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice (SDSU) 6-2, 6-4
5. Robin Parts (SDSU) def. Tygen Goldammer (BYU) 7-5, 6-4
6. Alexander Mandma (SDSU) def. TJ Wells (BYU) 2-6, 6-1, 6-2
Doubles Competition
1. Alexander Mandma/Robin Parts (SDSU) def. No. 35 Wally Thayne/Zach Fuchs (BYU) 7-5
2. Jack Barnett/Redd Owen (BYU) def. Chikaya Sato/Johannes Seeman (SDSU) 7-5
3. Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice/Bora Sengul (SDSU) def. TJ Wells/Tygen Goldammer (BYU) 6-4
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (1,4,2,5,6,3)