Men's tennis defeats Illinois-Chicago in home opener
ISU sweeps doubles matches, wins four of six in singles play
Zack Lessentien, Daily Vidette Staff
Issue date: 1/30/08 Section: Sports
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"We were pretty solid Saturday," James said. "We still have to be a bit more mentally tougher and learn to get over our nerves a bit quicker. We did a lot of things well though, and it was nice to get a win under out belts in our first dual match."
In singles action, the Redbirds won four of the six singles matches on the day.
Seniors Luka Marinkovic and Oscar Beich both lost thrilling three-set matches. Marinkovic was defeated by Sebastian Lystad, 3-6, 6-3, (7-5). Beich was defeated by Bastian Harbo, 4-6, 7-5, (10-8).
Junior Nuno Jacinto pulled out a win over Adriano Liccardo, 6-3, 6-2.
Junior Daniel Tobar chalked up a victory against Danny Wilson, 6-1, 6-2.
Sophomore Xavier Riart-Ferrer defeated Eric Fey, 6-4, 6-4. It was also the debut match of the newly recruited freshman Filip Miljevic. Miljevic was victorious in his debut as he beat Tim O'Brien 6-0, 6-2. James was very impressed by the freshman Miljevic.
"He came ready to play mentally and it really showed in his performance," James said. "Today was the first time we were able to see him in some pressure situations and he handled them very well. Filip played good and was able to pull off an easy victory."
In doubles, the 'Birds were back to their dominant play as they won all three matches.
The team of Marinkovic and Tobar were able to pull out a win over Liccardo and Harbo, 8-3. Jacinto and Riart-Ferrer came out with a win over Lystad and Wilson, 8-4.
Sophomore Michael Hobson and Beich wrapped up the day with a win over Fey and Sean Kreymborg, 8-4.
The 'Birds will continue their spring campaign next weekend by hitting the road.
They will travel to Arlington, Texas to take on Texas-Arlington on Friday, Feb. 1 and then SMU on Saturday, Feb. 2.
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