BOCA RATON, FL -- The Florida Atlantic University men's tennis team got back into the win column in impressive fashion on Tuesday with a commanding 7-0 victory over New Jersey Institute of Technology at Patch Reef Park in Boca Raton. The Owls improved to 8-5 on the season and snapped a two-match losing streak.
"This was a terrific performance by the boys against a talented NJIT team," said Men's Tennis Head Coach Brandon Stokes. "We were able to apply pressure throughout the match in all the courts."
Junior Marc Abdelnour cruised to a straight-set victory at No. 1 singles by a 6-2, 6-1 score over Stephen Erickson. It was Erickson's first loss of the season after being 14-0 in singles, 9-0 at the No. 1 position.
"It is easier to stay focused when playing good players because you need to play at a consistent and high level to beat them," said Abdelnour. "I always strive to do my best when I'm on the court. Today was a good win."
The Aleppo, Syria native teamed with junior Ervin Garibovic to win at No. 2 doubles by an 8-3 score. He has won six straight matches over the past three days.
Fellow junior Joshua Scholl also dropped only three games in picking up a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 3 singles.
"(NJIT's Fraser Croad) was a tough player. I had a good rhythm about my hitting today," said Scholl. "The ball looked really big and I was able to go for my shots on a regular basis."
Freshman Matthew Braunworth clinched the FAU victory with a straight-set win in the No. 5 singles slot. The Boca Raton native won by identical 6-3 scores.
Other victories were recorded by sophomore Derek Madon, a 6-2, 6-1 winner at No. 6 singles; senior Lawrence Harradine, who battled through two hard-fought sets to win at No. 2 singles by 7-5 and 6-4 scores; and freshman Georg Matschke, who rallied from dropping the opening set to win a third-set tiebreaker by a 10-4 score.
The Owls swept all three doubles matches to clinch the only point possible for the match.
FAU returns to the court on Thursday, March 18 against Sun Belt Conference foe University of South Alabama, starting at 2 p.m., from Patch Reef Park.