DENVER-- The No. 41 University of Denver men's tennis team (10-7, 1-0 Summit League) earned their sixth victory over a ranked opponent Thursday afternoon. The Pioneers defeated the No. 66 UCSB Gauchos (6-7), 5-2.

Junior David Fox and freshman Zach Fryer kicked off the match by dispatching the duo of Morgan Mays and Andrew Riminton, 7-5. The No. 32 pairing of junior Henry Craig and sophomore Alex Gasson would follow that up with a, 7-6 (11-9) battle to clinch the doubles point for Denver.

"I was very pleased how we hung in there under some pressure moments," said Head Coach Danny Westerman. "UCSB deserves a lot of credit with the way they came out to start the match. They made us feel very uncomfortable at times throughout the match, but we found a way to raise our level when it mattered most."

The Gauchos would scrap with the Pioneers, but wins from Fox, No. 117 Craig, and Gasson would give the Pioneers a, 4-0 lead and the match victory. Sophomore and No. 107 Diogo Rocha would cap the victory with a, 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 12-10 win on court two.

"The best teams in the country find ways to win when they are not playing their best," said Westerman. "I am happy we gutted out some tight situations.  If we want to be considered one of the better teams out there, we need to gut out matches like this one." 

The Pioneers will square off against Summit League opponent Western Illinois Saturday, March 28 at noon MT on the DU campus.

#41 Denver Pioneers 5, #66 UCSB 2

Doubles competition
1. #32 CRAIG, Henry/GASSON, Alex (DEN) def. GALSKOV, Tobias/SULTAN, Ziad (UCSB) 7-6 (11-9)
2. ESHMADE, Nathan/JOHNSSON, Erik (UCSB) vs. ROCHA, Diogo/JAMES, Yannik (DEN) no result
3. FOX, David/FRYER, Zach (DEN) def. MAYS, Morgan/RIMINTON, Andrew (UCSB) 7-5

Singles competition
1. Craig, Henry (DEN) def. GALSKOV, Tobias (UCSB) 6-2, 6-4
2. Rocha, Diogo (DEN) def. ESHMADE, Nathan (UCSB) 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 12-10
3. Gasson, Alex (DEN) def. RAKELA, Cody (UCSB) 6-3, 2-6, 6-2
4. MAYS, Morgan (UCSB) def. James, Yannik (DEN) 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-4
5. Fox, David (DEN) def. HAMILTON, Teague (UCSB) 6-2, 6-4
6. JOHNSSON, Erik (UCSB) def. Lovera, Wyatt (DEN) 6-4, 7-6 (13-11)

Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (5,1,3,6,4,2)                                       

 

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