ST. PETER, Minn. – The No. 19-ranked Gustavus men’s tennis team earned two wins Friday in split squad matches, defeating Coe College 8-1 at Swanson Tennis Center and taking down Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference foe Concordia College 7-2 in Moorhead, Minn.
The Gusties, now 16-2 overall and 6-0 in conference action, have posted 16 straight victories. Against No. 36-ranked Coe, the only loss came from No. 3 doubles. At Concordia, the Gusties came out victorious after being down 1-2 in doubles play.
“Tonight was special for our team,” said Head Coach Tommy Valentini. “The group that faced Coe executed our game plan well in the doubles and competed with great energy. In the singles they stayed poised and showed good trust and belief against a very strong team. We are thankful the result lined up with how we competed.”
“The group that took on Concordia showed tremendous poise and resilience,” Valentini commented. “After competing hard but falling behind 2-1 in the doubles they bounced back to sweep the singles winning 3 third set tiebreaks. The trust and fortitude they demonstrated was fantastic. Again, we are thankful that the result matched up with how the guys competed with a lot on the line. It was a great effort from all of the guys tonight. We’ll look to build on it and to rely on our depth again moving into tomorrow’s matches.”
Singles
- Mohanad Alhouni (Jr., Tripoli, Libya) (GAC) def. Brady Anderson (COE) 6-2, 6-4
- Zach Ekstein (Jr., Eagan, Minn.) (GAC) def. Nate Ackert (COE) 6-4, 6-3
- Patrick Whaling (So., Mankiob Sabot, Va.) def. James McManus (COE) 6-3, 6-4
- Tommy Entwistle (Sioux Falls, S.D.) (GAC) def. Josh Pudlo (COE) 6-0, 7-6
- Chase Johnson (So., Golden Valley, Minn.) (GAC) def. Alex Bernt (COE) 6-3, 6-4
- Yassine Derbani (Fy., Casablanca, Morocco) (GAC) def. Luke Ford (COE) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles
- Alhouni/Whaling (GAC) def. Josh Pudlo/Luke Ford (COEM) 8-4
- Entwistle/Johnson (GAC) def. Brady Anderson/Nate Greiner (COEM) 8-3
- Nate Ackert/James McManus (COE) def. David Hagberg (Sr., Eden Prairie, Minn.)/Ekstein (GAC) 8-4
Singles
- Gabe Steinwand (Jr., Moorhead, Minn.) (GAC) def. Isaac Toivonen (CC) 2-6, 7-6 (7-4), 10-5
- Michael O’Neil (Fy., Edina, Minn.) (GAC) def. David Youngs (CC) 6-0, 6-4
- Mason Bultje (Jr., Mankato, Minn.) (GAC) def. David Schneck (CC) 6-4, 6-2
- Joakim Ekfeldt (Sr., Stockholm, Sweden) (GAC) def. Jesse Schneeberger (CC) 1-6, 7-6 (7-2), 10-7
- Alex Senjem (So., Rochester, Minn.) (GAC) def. Jesse Schneeberger (CC) 1-6, 7-6 (7-2), 10-7
- Can-Aras Thierhoff (So., Frankfurt, Germany) (GAC) def. Jared Saue (CC) 6-2, 6-7 (7-4), 10-4
Doubles
- Isaac Toivonen/David Youngs (CC) def. Steinwand/Bultje (GAC) 8-5
- David Schneck/Erik Porter (CC) def. O’Neil/Senjem (GAC) 9-8 (11-9)
- Ekfeldt/Zeke Haugen (Fy., St. Peter, Minn.) (GAC) def. Jesse Schneeberger/Jared Saue (CC) 8-3
Tomorrow, the Black and Gold have another two split squad matches. Half of the Gusties will host Saint John’s University at 11:30 a.m. while the others will take on Division I opponent University of North Dakota at 5 p.m.