ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (4-25-2015) - Abe Hewko rallied from one set down to win in three handing Boise State an upset of No. 1 seed and tournament host New Mexico 4-2 in Albuquerque Saturday afternoon. Boise State lost the doubles point, then rallied winning four of the six singles contests to earn a trip to the Broncos fourth-consecutive MW Championship match Sunday afternoon against seventh-seed Nevada. Garrett Patton, Brian Foley, Lewis Roskilly and Hewko, respectively, all recorded singles victories to lead the Broncos to the win over the 39th-ranked Lobos and improve to 14-15 overall.
“We are just living the dream! What a match today and what a big win against a good New Mexico team,” said coach Greg Patton. “When we lost the doubles point, I just told the guys if we are going out, we are going to fight the entire way. They responded and came out with fire in singles and took momentum. Garrett (Patton) and Brian (Foley) had big quick wins for us to give us the energy that everyone else fed on. I told these guys all year that we are building for the Mountain West Tournament, that winning it was our goal.”
The match was a battle from the very beginning starting with doubles as it came down to the final contest before the point was decided. Foley and Hewko had the weight of the team doubles point resting on their shoulders with it tied at one win apiece. They were facing New Mexico’s Mitchell McDaniels and Samir Iftikhar on court three when they let it slip away from them at the end by a 7-5 score.
The teams split the first two doubles matches leading up to that with the Lobos winning the first contest 6-0 on court two over Patton and Toby Mitchell. Boise State pulled even when the Broncos top-tandem of Thomas Tenreiro and Roskilly put away the nation’s 60th-ranked pair of Hayden Sabatka and Bart Van Leijsen 6-4 on court one.
This is only the second match all year that Boise State has won after dropping the doubles point as the Broncos rallied during the singles competition.
It began with a dominating performance by senior Garrett Patton on court one where he quickly dispatched New Mexico’s Sabatka in straight sets 6-3, 6-2. The Boise native and All-MW honoree extended his win streak to 11 straight while improving to a team-best 24-9 overall.
The Broncos moved to within one of victory following wins on courts four and five. Foley followed Patton’s victory with a two-set win on court four 6-3, 6-2 over the Lobos’ Van Leijsen to give the Blue and Orange its first lead in the match up 2-1. Roskilly then moved Boise State to within one of victory when he rolled past James Hignett at No. 5 singles 6-1, 6-3 for a 3-1 Broncos advantage.
That setup the heroic victory by sophomore Abe Hewko on court six where he was battling New Mexico’s Rodolfo Jauregui. Hewko lost the first set 4-6, then rallied winning the second 6-2 to force the decisive third set. The Palm Desert, Calif., native wasted little time taking control of the final frame going up 4-2 with a service break, then put it away for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 win, handing the Broncos the victory and a berth into Sunday’s championship match.
“Lewis (Roskilly) and Abe (Hewko) came through with key wins and grinded out their matches playing with alot of heart,” said coach Patton. “I am so pleased for Abe to win the way he did answering the challenge, what a big day for him and our team.”
This was the fourth-consecutive year that the Broncos and Lobos have met in the Mountain West Tournament, the first three were in the title match, and the four straight time Boise State prevailed victorious. The Broncos who are looking for their fourth-consecutive title take a perfect 10-0 mark all-time in this tournament into tomorrow’s title confrontation with the Nevada Wolf Pack at 11 a.m. (Mountain) at Albuquerque.
Match Summary
Mountain West Tournament Semifinals
No. 5 Boise State (14-15) at No. 1 New Mexico (20-10)
April 25, 2015 at Albuquerque, N.M. (McKinnon Family Tennis Stadium)
Boise State def. No. 39 New Mexico 4-2
Doubles competition
1. Roskilly/Tenreiro (BSU) def. No. 60 Sabatka/Van Leijsen (UNM) 6-4
2. Shunji Hirooka/ Augustus Ge (UNM) def. Patton/Mitchell (BSU) 6-0
3. McDaniels/Iftikhar (UNM) def. Foley/Hewko (BSU) 7-5
Order of finish: 2,1,3
Singles competition
1. Garrett Patton (BSU) def. Hayden Sabatka (UNM) 6-3, 6-2
2. No. 98 Samir Iftikhar (UNM) def. Thomas Tenreiro (BSU) 6-3, 7-5
3. Mitchell McDaniels (UNM) vs. Toby Mitchell (BSU) 4-6, 6-4, 2-2, unfinished
4. Brian Foley (BSU) def. Bart Van Leijsen (UNM) 6-3, 6-2
5. Lewis Roskilly (BSU) def. James Hignett (UNM) 6-1, 6-3
6. Abe Hewko (BSU) def. Rodolfo Jauregui (UNM) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
Order of finish: 1,4,5,2,6
