Vaqueros one-up the Cougars

The UTRGV Men’s Tennis Team secured a 4-3 victory today against Brigham Young University at the Orville I. Cox Tennis Center, making its overall record 5-8.

During the first set of doubles, Cougar sophomore Zach Fuchs and junior Brigham Andrus won 6-3 against Vaqueros sophomore Karlo Krolo and sophomore SamWhitehead.

The second set tied UTRGV with BYU, with a 6-2 victory from sophomore Borna Devald and junior Emilien Burnel.

After a tiebreaker in the last match, junior Cougars Dominik Jakovljevic and freshman Redd Owen prevailed 6-7 against seniors Christopher Lawrence and Te Kani Williams, making the score 1-0. 

The first of the singles matches had Burnel earning UTRGV a point by beating Cougar sophomore Wally Thayne.

BYU’s Fuchs beat Devald 6-4 and 6-4 in the second match, followed by Vaquero Krolo beating Jakovljevic 6-4 and 6-1. In the fourth match, BYU’s Owen defeated Whitehead 6-2 and 6-1.

Freshman Agustin Salazar earned UTRGV its third point against Cougar Andrus with a score of 7-5 and 6-2. The final tie-breaking point was achieved by Vaquero Lawrence against freshman Brian Chen.

Head coach Nathan Robinson said the team had heart and that it was probably the best match he had seen in his two years with the program. 

“We’re pretty banged up,” Robinson said. “But we found a way. BYU is one of the big 12 matches. They’re battle-tested. They got some big boys who hit the ball hard. Our guys just dug in.”

He said the Vaqueros train in tough conditions due to the weather in the Rio Grande Valley and that was evident during the game.

Asked about Burnell clutching a close match that went into overtime, Robinson said his opponent has been playing great this year, and it was good to see Burnell step up and take control.

“And then to have [Lawrence] realize he’s the last on, feel the pressure and say, ‘I’m just going to do my job,’” Robinson said.

The coach said he was “extremely happy” with the players’ performance, saying they had to win four singles instead of three due to losing the doubles. 

“I think it’s a testament to where this program is headed,” Robinson said. “And I think it’s just the first step.”

Lawrence said it was a hard start to the match due to losing the doubles, but he was proud of his teammates for bringing it back with the singles wins. 

“My partner and I played really well throughout the match,” he said. “But we got a bit unlucky at the end there, but I’m really proud of the guys.”

Asked how it felt to be the last match and clutching the win for UTRGV, Lawrence replied it was the best feeling to have his teammates surrounding him when he finished the match. 

“Everyone had a really good performance,” he said. “I know we got a few losses there, but we fought really hard until the end and I’m really proud.”

The Vaqueros are set to play against the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Orville I. Cox Tennis Center. The team will then participate in the Golden State Invitational in Davis, California, hosted by the University of California-Davis on March 10 and 11.