JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Despite an early lead, North Florida men's tennis (10-6, 1-1 ASUN) suffered a 4-3 loss to a resilient Kennesaw State (11-4, 3-0 ASUN) team Friday, March 25. It's UNF's first home loss of 2022 in eight contests at the UNF Tennis Complex.
With the overall score tied 3-3, KSU's Raul Garcia won in three frames, edging
Nilo Duarte to decide the match.
How it Happened
UNF won by 6-4 tallies at the first and second doubles positions, clinching the opening point of the afternoon.
Rodrigo Crespo and
Dominik Barton had their match left unfinished at 5-5 in Barton's first appearance in the spring 2022 season.
Jonas Hartenstein handed KSU's Matthew Terry his first loss of the spring season with a straight-sets win. KSU evened it at the fourth position before going ahead, 3-2, with wins at five and six singles.
Matt Carroll got tough to win in three frames, posting a commanding, 6-1, win in the third set to tie things up, 3-3.
Everyone's attention turned to Garcia and Duarte at the second position. Duarte won 6-3 in the opening frame, although Garcia took a second-set tiebreaker, 7-2, to even things. Garcia won the third game of the final frame to take a 2-1 lead. With Duarte down, 4-2, the senior got one game back to cut it to a 4-3 deficit. Garcia continued to make shots and serve well, winning 6-4 to give the Owls the match.
KSU 4, UNF 3
Friday, March 25 | UNF Tennis Complex | Jacksonville, Fla.
Singles Competition
1.
Jonas Hartenstein (UNF) def. Matthew Terry (KSUM) 6-2, 6-4
2. Raul Garcia (KSUM) def.
Nilo Duarte (UNF) 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4
3.
Matt Carroll (UNF) def. Harvey Conway (KSUM) 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
4. Kevin Patel (KSUM) def.
PJ Kotan (UNF) 6-4, 6-1
5. Sergio Ingles (KSUM) def.
Rodrigo Crespo (UNF) 3-6, 6-0, 6-3
6. Hugo Salmeron (KSUM) def.
Bruno Vietri (UNF) 6-2, 0-6, 6-4
Doubles Competition
1.
Jorge Nunez/
Jonas Hartenstein (UNF) def. Hugo Salmeron/Matthew Terry (KSUM) 6-4
2.
Matt Carroll/
Nilo Duarte (UNF) def. Daniel Botti/Seru Tezuka (KSUM) 6-4
3.
Rodrigo Crespo/
Dominik Barton (UNF) vs. Harvey Conway/Raul Garcia (KSUM) 5-5, unfinished
Match Notes
Kennesaw State 11-4, 3-0 ASUN
North Florida 10-6, 1-1 ASUN
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (1,4,5,6,3,2)
Official: Kendyl Jenkins T-3:45 A-80
Other Notes
- Carroll is on a three-match singles winning streak.
- It was UNF's first home loss since the Ospreys lost to Kennesaw State April 3 of 2021.
- UNF is 7-1 at home on the year.
Up Next
UNF finishes the weekend with a 3 p.m. first serve against FGCU Sunday, March 27.
