Baylor University Team Page
WACO, Texas- The 18th -ranked Baylor men's tennis team claimed 7-0 victories over UT Pan-American and UT Arlington on Saturday at the Hurd Tennis Center.
With the two wins today, Baylor improves to 5-1 on the year and remains undefeated at home with a record of 5-0.
"I thought the second match was our best match of the year," said head coach Matt Knoll. "Just in terms of our energy, our focus level, and our execution were way better than they have been. I am really optimistic about what is coming up next for this team."
Knoll was able to switch up his lineup including doubles teams in the second match, but the Bears posted the third and fourth shutouts of the season.
Match No. 1 vs. UT Pan-American
In the first match, the Bears claimed the doubles point with wins on court 3 and court 1 by scores of 8-3 and 8-1.
The Bears kept the momentum rolling as singles action got underway. Baylor's Patrick Pradella made quick work of UTPA's Chetan Panditi winning by a score of 6-0, 6-1 in the No. 2 spot.
Diego Galeano was soon to follow with a win on court 5 by a score of 6-3, 6-0. Roberto Maytin then posted a 6-2, 6-2 win on court 4. Tony Lupieri clinched the Baylor win with a victory at the No. 1 spot with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Thomas Panoulas, before Robert Verzaal picked up a 6-4, 6-1 victory in the No. 6 spot. No. 56 Marko Krickovic was the last Bear to finish on court 3 with a win over Ricardo Hopker by a score of 6-2, 6-3.
The Bears win over UTPA moves the overall series record to 13-10 and the second straight 7-0 victory for the Bears vs. the Broncs. With the loss, UTPA falls to 1-5 on the season.
Match No. 2 vs. UT Arlington
Baylor earned its second 7-0 victory of the day with a win over UT Arlington. The Bears claimed the doubles point by winning 8-1, 8-0 on courts 3 and 2. The win pushed the team's doubles record to 6-0 for the season.
In the singles action, Diego Galeano tallied a 6-0, 6-0. Patrick Pradella was the next Baylor win on court 3 by a score of 6-1, 6-1.
Roberto Maytin clinched the match for the Bears with a 6-2, 6-0 victory over UTA's Marek Pesicka, before Julian Lenz claimed a 6-2, 6-2 victory in the No. 1 spot. Mate Zsiga was able to claim the sixth match point on court 4 with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Sebastia Erimicioiu. Tony Lupieri finished the match with a victory on court 1 with a score of 6-3, 7-5.
The win improved the Bears to 12-3 against the Mavericks all-time. UTA is now 1-2 on the season with the loss.
The Bears next match will be on the road against North Florida on Feb. 21 before taking on No. 11 Florida in Gainesville, Fla. The Bears will return home on March 2 to host their second double header of the season, which will feature Laredo Community College and Abilene Christian.
"We don't have a signature win yet, but we have a good opportunity when we go down to Gainesville next weekend," Knoll said. "We are way more prepared then we were the last time we played a team of that caliber, so we are excited and we will go down there and see what happens."
To stay up to date with the team all season follow @BaylorMTennis on Twitter.
