AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn men's tennis team opened its 2020 dual match season outdoors Friday afternoon with a pair of wins over North Alabama at the Yarbrough Tennis Center. Auburn won the first match 6-1 and took the nightcap by a 4-0 score.
"We did pretty well considering having four new guys in the lineup today and they played both singles matches. We talked about being physical and disciplined before the match and never giving the momentum up once we had it. It's nice to get the cobwebs and the nerves out of the way," assistant coach Chris Hooshyar said. "Moving forward, I definitely would like for us to play each individual point a little bit better and to keep that focus and intensity locked in."
In the opening match, the Tigers swept all three doubles matches and freshman Finn Murgett, playing in his first Auburn match, got things started in singles with a 6-2, 6-0 victory on court four over Yannick Pfleiderer. Spencer Gray and Diego Chavarria added singles wins on courts five and six to clinch the team win, and Matteo DeVincentis and Tyler Stice posted wins on courts three and two to conclude the Auburn scoring.
In the second match, Auburn swept the doubles again. Murgett posted a 6-0, 6-2 singles win on court three and Gray was a 6-2, 6-2 winner on court four before Tyler Stice clinched the match with a 6-1, 6-1 win on court one.
Auburn is 2-0 on the new season and North Alabama starts 0-2. These were the first of 12 non-conference matches for the Tigers to open the spring campaign. Auburn will travel to Clemson on Friday, January 24, for its next contest; the Tigers' next home matches will be Sunday, January 26, against VCU at noon and Alabama A&M at 5 p.m. All Auburn home tennis action is at the Yarbrough Tennis Center (771 Yarbrough Farms Blvd., Auburn) and admission is free.
Auburn 6, North Alabama 1/first match
Singles
Cian Maguire (UNA) def. Tom Wright (AU) 6-3, 6-4
Tyler Stice (AU) def. Andreas Hanson (UNA) 6-2, 6-0
Matteo DeVincentis (AU) def. Gustavo Girao (UNA) 6-2, 6-3
Finn Murgett (AU) def. Yannick Pfleiderer (UNA) 6-2, 6-0
Spencer Gray (AU) def. Tim Heslin (UNA) 6-2, 6-2
Diego Chavarria (AU) def. Cade Reasons (UNA) 6-3, 6-1
Doubles
DeVincentis/Stice (AU) def. Maguire/Hansen (UNA) 6-4
Murgett/Wright (AU) def. Girao/Heslin (UNA) 6-2
Chavarria/Anders Fry (AU) def. Pfleiderer/Reasons (UNA) 6-1
Order of finish: Doubles: 3,2,1; Singles: 4,5,6,3,2,1; Official: Donna Jerome
Auburn 4, North Alabama 0/second match
Singles
Tyler Stice (AU) def. Cian Maguire (UNA) 6-1, 6-1
Tom Wright (AU) vs. Andreas Hansen (UNA) 6-3, 4-2
Finn Murgett (AU) def. Gustavo Girao (UNA) 6-0, 6-2
Spencer Gray (AU) def. Yannick Pfleiderer (UNA) 6-2, 6-2
Michael Durham (AU) vs. Tim Heslin (UNA) 6-3, 3-4
Diego Chavarria (AU) vs. Cade Reasons (UNA) 3-6, 6-2
Doubles
DeVincentis/Stice (AU) v Maguire/Girao (UNA) 6-4
Murgett/Wright (AU) def. Hansen/Pfleiderer (UNA) 6-3
Chavarria/Fry (AU) def. Heslin/Reasons (UNA) 6-1
Order of finish: Doubles: 3,2,1; Singles: 3,4,1; Official: Donna Jerome