DENVER – The University of Denver men's tennis team (5-4) claimed a 6-1 win over Idaho at Denver Tennis Park on Sunday.
 
DU finished undefeated on the weekend after hosting three matches after a 7-0 sweep against Metropolitan State and another 6-1 win over Utah State in a Friday double header.
 
Doubles:
Denver won the first point of the day with victories in No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. Both of DU's teams – junior Nicolas Herrero Cuesta/redshirt senior Anish Sriniketh in No. 2 doubles and sophomore Daniel Sancho Arbizu/freshman Raffaello Papajcik in No. 3 doubles – broke in their first return games for 2-0 leads. Herrero Cuesta/Sriniketh gave their first break back but added another break lead for 4-2 before closing out the match, 6-3.
 
After Idaho took the No. 1 match, the point came down to No. 3 doubles. Sancho Arbizu/Papajcik had a 4-1 lead before giving up a break for 4-3. The Denver team earned triple match point on return at 5-4, winning at 15-40 to give DU the early 1-0 lead overall.
 
Singles:
Junior Peter Sallay and graduate student Conner Olsen put DU up 3-0 with wins in straight sets in No. 3 and No. 4 singles, respectively, with each taking quick leads in the first set. Sallay closed out the second set after breaking midway through and holding on for 6-4. Olsen traded breaks to start his second set before adding a second break late for his own 6-4 win.
 
Idaho stayed alive with a three-set win in No. 5 singles while the remaining three matches also went to a decisive set. In No. 6 singles, freshman Papajcik broke late for 5-3 in the first set before closing it out, 6-3. Idaho's Mario Duron used consecutive breaks for a 6-2 win in the second set to force a third set, which remained on serve until Papajcik broke late again for 5-4 and held to clinch the victory for Denver.
 
No. 1 and No. 2 singles completed within minutes of each other, both going the distance in tough, physical battles. Sancho Arbizu broke up 5-4 in the first set to take it, 6-4, before dropping the second set, 6-2. The third set remained on serve until Sancho Arbizu broke late to ultimately win the match,
 
Back in No. 1 singles, Herrero Cuesta won the first set after going down a break in the opening game before breaking back for 2-1 and adding a second break to claim the 7-5 win. He started the second set with a break, but Idaho's Francisco Bascon broke in two consecutive return games for a 6-4 win. Herrero Cuesta fought back in the third set, facing a 1-4 deficit before rattling off five straight games for the overall victory.
 
Up Next:
Denver heads west for its first Power-5 match of the season at Utah on Saturday, February 25, at 12 p.m. MT
 
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