Revenge is sweet for the UNM men’s tennis team — especially when it comes against its biggest rival.
After dropping a disappointing 4-3 decision to rival New Mexico State last season, the Lobos rebounded for a 5-2 win Saturday at the Linda Estes Tennis Complex.
Head coach Alan Dils said his team waited a year for vindication.
“We didn’t like losing in Las Cruces last year,” he said. “This has been a match that has been on our radar ever since that match. We’ve been talking about it. We’ve been looking forward to it. We’ve had the date circled on our calendars for some time now.”
With the win, UNM is 3-0 on the year, while the Aggies dropped to 1-2.
The Lobos improved to 88-10 all-time against NMSU, collecting 1.5 points in the Rio Grande Rivalry series for a commanding 18-3 lead.
“This win was huge for us,” senior Joe Wood said. “Beating your rivals is huge, and we did it so emphatically. All the guys did a great job, and beating New Mexico State is such a good feeling.”
Spurred by a raucous crowd of about 200 onlookers, UNM quickly jumped out to a 1-0 lead with a pair of 8-4 doubles victories.
In the No. 1 doubles match, sophomore Conor Berg and junior Ben Dunbar dropped the Aggies’ Arthur Surreaux and Jim Brouleau.
Sophomore Jadon Phillips and junior Phil Anderson bested NMSU’s Matej Stakne and Marc Westgate at the No. 2 spot.
The Lobos are now 3-0 in doubles points this season.
“We’ve got some doubles teams set, and our guys are comfortable playing doubles,” Dils said. “I’m really pleased with the emotion we’re showing right out of the gate in doubles. We’re playing doubles with a lot of intensity and purpose.”
In singles, Berg continued his 14-match winning streak with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Aggie Luis Ramirez for the Lobos’ first point in singles play.
Wood, the Lobos’ lone senior, was next off the court, posting a 6-3, 6-4 win over NMSU’s Felipe Frattini to put UNM up 3-0.
Needing just one more point to clinch the match, Phillips rallied late in the second set for a 6-4, 7-5 win at the No. 1 singles spot to clinch the match for the Lobos.
Phillips, last year’s Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year, said he had to dig deep late to pull out the win.
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“At 2-3, he broke my serve, and he was up 4-2 in the second set,” he said. “I just kept playing hard. At 5-4, I got the break back, and then I won the next two games. I had to step up at the end.”
Dunbar added a security point for the Lobos with a 6-4, 7-6 (3) victory against Brouleau at the No. 2 singles position.
Anderson and junior Carl Ho both lost in tough third-set tiebreakers.
Dils said the win showed how much his team has matured since last season.
“We had some guys who lost to their respective opponents last season,” he said. “And they beat them this time.”
