SAINT LEO, Fla. – The Saint Leo men's tennis team downed Gustavus Adolphus 7-2 in the Lions' season home opener on Thursday.
Head Coach
Chad Berryhill commented, "I thought our guys competed well today overall. I was glad to see us take two-of-three doubles, knowing that Gustavus being an indoor team, would play well in the doubles. Gustavus competed very hard in singles, so our guys had to step up and take points and games rather than hope our opponent would make the mistake and I think we did that well."
Saint Leo took second and third doubles. Second doubles duo
Jaime Bueno and
Willem Van Den Akker earned an 8-3 win while third doubles
Thomas Grinberg and
James Defusto won 8-2.
Berryhill continued, "I was very happy for
James Defusto earning his first dual match wins in singles and in doubles as a Senior. I am very proud of him and the leadership he brings to our team as captain."
"
Thomas Grinberg also had a good win against the #1 ranked NCAA DIII player in the country in straight sets."
Grinberg led the Lions in single play at the number one spot. He defeated Mohanad Alhouni 6-1, 6-3. In second singles Bueno earned a comeback extra set 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 win.
Francisco Aparicio defeated his third singles opponent 7-6, 6-1 followed by
Willem Van Den Akker with a fifth singles 6-0, 6-2 win and Defusto six singles 6-2, 6-1 victory.
"Bottom line for us is that we need to keep getting better as we will need to play better tennis coming up with some tough matches in the very near future," concluded Berryhill.
The Lions return to the action on Sunday, February 18 at 1:00 p.m. hosting Flagler.
For the latest news, updates, and information on the Saint Leo Tennis be sure to visit SaintLeoLions.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
