The UNM men's and women's tennis teams got off to perfect starts in their spring season openers this weekend at Lobo Tennis Club.
The Lobos welcomed Northern Arizona University, but proved to be poor hosts as each team recorded 7-0 sweeps of the Lumberjacks.
On Saturday, the women set the tone with three clinical wins to earn the doubles point. Senior Sandy Lukowski and sophomore Maja Kovacek teamed up at the No. 1 spot to handily beat Kristina Klokinis and Ashley Dille 8-1.
Lukowski and Kovacek used strong service games and deft touch at the net to dominate the match. The duo recorded seven service winners and three aces en route to the victory.
Senior Maria Ruiz-Fabrega and freshman Iva Gersic paired up to produce similar results at the No. 2 doubles position. They beat NAU's Susan McClelland and Julie Schmandt 8-3. Juniors Tiffany Robertson and Michelle Heidbrink rounded out the doubles wins with an 8-0 drubbing of Karen Kmiec and Ashley Hunt.
"It was really important for us to get off to a strong start," Kovacek said. "We tried hard to get our momentum going. We might have been a bit sloppy, but they didn't give us too much to work for."
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The Lobos didn't let up after the doubles dominance, taking all six singles matches to complete the sweep.
Gersic, Kovacek, Lukowski, Robertson, Ruiz-Fabrega and senior Tjasa Suvak all earned wins. McClelland was the only NAU player to pose a threat, as she forced Ruiz-Fabrega to go three sets.
Suvak said the win should give UNM added assurance heading into a six-game road swing that doesn't see them return to home action until Feb. 28.
"We expected to win, but I was still a bit nervous," Suvak said. "It is always good to start with a win, though. It gives us confidence."
On Sunday the men picked up right where the women left off.
Senior Divan Coetzee and freshman Hiroud Akhavan started the Lobos on the right foot with an 8-4 win over the Lumberjacks' Jonas Jegers and Jamie Maxwell. Senior Jasmin Hodzic and sophomore Henry Gers posted an identical 8-4 victory, easily handling Jeremy Coll and James Heck.
The No. 1 doubles spot proved to be more of a test for the Lobos.
The 37th-ranked duo of juniors Ryan Stotland and David Kowalski needed a tiebreaker to beat Thibault Schram and Lew DeLeon 9-8. Both teams held serve until the 13th game, with the 'Jacks breaking Stotland's serve for a 7-6 lead and the match on DeLeon's racket.
Stotland and Kowalski rallied, however, and broke back to tie the match at 7-7. Neither team could get another break, so a tiebreaker was needed to decide the contest. The Lobos found their groove in the extra frame with a comfortable 7-2 win.
Coetzee, Kowalski, Stotland, Akhavan, Hodzic and sophomore Nick Ames picked up wins on the singles side, with only Stotland dropping a set to Jegers.
The men are also on the road for their next two matches, as they head to California to face Santa Clara and San Francisco next weekend.
