Feb. 25, 2011
MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- The No. 22 Auburn men's tennis team kicked off the 2011 Blue Gray National Tennis Classic with a 4-1 win over No. 37 Boise State at the Lagoon Park Tennis Center in Montgomery Friday. The win lifts Auburn to 6-2 on the season.
"Tough match for us today," head coach Eric Shore said. We did a good job hanging in there and we played well in certain spots. Tomorrow is going to be tough and we have to play better if we want to continue winning."
The Tigers captured two of three doubles to start the match. The No. 1 doubles team of senior Tim Puetz and freshman Daniel Cochrane tallied an 8-4 win over Damian Hume and Scott Sears to improve to 6-1 on the season as a pair.
Sophomore Lucas Lopasso and freshman Rafael Rondino picked up an 8-6 victory over Boise State's Andrew Bettles and Filipp Pogostkin at No. 3 doubles to secure the team point. Junior Alex Stamchev and sophomore Andreas Mies dropped an 8-6 match to Jeff Mullen and Nathan Sereke at No. 2 doubles.
The Broncos opened singles competition with a two-set win at No. 5 singles to lock the match a 1-1. Auburn, however, responded with three-straight singles victories, starting with a two-set win at No. 1 singles. Puetz put together a 6-1, 6-3 win over Hume to give the Tigers a 2-1 advantage.
Cochrane pushed Auburn to a 3-1 lead with a two-set (6-3, 6-1) win over Mullen at No. 4 singles. The victory lifted the Alton, England, product to an 8-1 singles record this season. Mies solidified the team win with a two-set (6-1, 6-4) victory at No. 6 singles against Sereke.
Auburn continues competition at the Blue Gray National Tennis Classic with a 2 p.m. match against No. 17 Texas Tech Saturday. The Red Raiders are the tournament's top-seeded team, while the Tigers at are the third seed.
Against Boise State
Singles
1. No. 72 Tim Puetz (Auburn) def. Damien Hume (Boise State); 6-1, 6-3
2. No. 96 Tim Hewitt (Auburn) vs. Filipp Pogostkin (Boise State); 3-6, 4-4, unfinished
3. Alex Stamchev (Auburn) vs. Scott Sears (Boise State); 4-6, 2-4, unfinished
4. Daniel Cochrane (Auburn) def. Jeff Mullen (Boise State); 6-3, 6-1
5. Andrew Bettles (Boise State) def. Rafael Rondino (Auburn); 6-0, 6-1
6. No. 106 Andreas Mies (Auburn) def. Nathan Sereke (Boise State); 6-1, 6-4
Doubles
1. Puetz/Cochran (Auburn) def. Hume/Sears (Boise State); 8-4
2. Mullen/Sereke (Boise State) def. Stamchev/Mies (Auburn); 8-6
3. Lopasso/Rondino (Auburn) def. Bettles/Pogostkin (Boise State); 8-6
Match Notes
Auburn: 6-2; National Ranking #22
Boise State: 3-7; National Ranking #37