Men’s Tennis Upends Stetson in ASUN Home Opener

Saturday, March 23

Jacksonville, Fla.

4:00 p.m.

University of North Florida

Stetson

Dominik Barton hits his backhand at the tennis courts/

Photo by: Todd Drexler

3/23/2019 9:24:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Box Score

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - UNF has been stellar at home this season, and that trend continued in the ASUN home opener Saturday. The Ospreys (7-9, 1-1 ASUN) downed familiar foe Stetson, 5-2, at the UNF Tennis Complex March 23.

A solid effort in doubles positioned the Ospreys with a 1-0 lead. Sahil Deshmukh and Nilo Duarte earned their second win in three matches as a pair, defeating Josh Laka and Tim Gennes, 6-2. Jorge Nunez and Federico Nani clinched the point with their fourth straight win, a 6-3 triumph at the second spot.

Not long into singles it was 2-0 UNF. Sahil Deshmukh won his 15th match of the 2018-19 campaign, finishing first with a 6-3, 6-1 rout of Louis Gorregues. Stetson (9-8, 1-1 ASUN) got one back at the third spot, but Nunez earned a key tilt win at the five slot, 6-2, 6-4. Nilo Duarte continued his winning ways, clinching for the third straight match at four singles. Duarte rebounded from a 4-6 loss in the first set to post consecutive 6-2 triumphs.

The two teams played to completion as the final two matches went to three sets. Dominik Barton showed great endurance, recovering from a 6-7 (5-7) opening-set loss to win 6-4, 6-1. Nani was barely edged at the six position, 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-3), falling despite a pair of shots at match point.

Coach Lucas' Comments
"It's always good to get a conference win, especially a win in the rematch of the ASUN final last year. We knew Stetson was going to bring their "A" game today, and hats off to them for that. We were up to the challenge though, doubles was working and I'm pleased with the chemistry and combinations that we have. At the same time, I don't think that we played our best in singles and I do think Stetson played well. But, as the defending ASUN champions we have to understand that there is going to be a target on our back and we have to play aggressively and proactively. If we do that we will be a great team. Overall, it was a great day. The crowd was great, Country Club Day was great, ESPN+ came out and thanks to Danny Witt and Richard Miller for the broadcast. It was a good team win today and we are going to build on this, but we will get back to work Monday and get ready for a very good Ivy League team in Brown." -- Head coach Matt Lucas

Notes:

UNF improves to 7-1 against Stetson at home.
UNF is 13-5 against the Hatters in series history.
The Ospreys are 5-1 at home this season and 3-1 on this home stand.

UNF 5, Stetson 2
March 23, 2019 | UNF Tennis Complex | Jacksonville, Fla.

Singles Competition
1. Sahil Deshmukh (UNF) def. Louis Gorregues (STET) 6-3, 6-1
2. Dominik Barton (UNF) def. Clement Hamel (STET) 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-1
3. Antoine Sanchez (STET) def. Till Von Winning (UNF) 6-3, 6-2
4. Nilo Duarte (UNF) def. Tim Gennes (STET) 4-6, 6-2, 6-2
5. Jorge Nunez (UNF) def. Coilin MacNamara (STET) 6-2, 6-4
6. Christian Mills (STET) def. Federico Nani (UNF) 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-3)

Doubles Competition
1. Sahil Deshmukh/Nilo Duarte (UNF) def. Josh Laka/Tim Gennes (STET) 6-2
2. Jorge Nunez/Federico Nani (UNF) def. Coilin MacNamara/Clement Hamel (STET) 6-3
3. Dominik Barton/Till Von Winning (UNF) vs. Antoine Sanchez/Linus Bergevi (STET) 5-5, uf

Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (1,3,5,4,2,6)
T: 3:12
A: 119

Up Next:
UNF closes out its non-conference slate and five-match home stand with Brown Tuesday, March 26, at 5 p.m.