New Mexico was rained out in California, but the men’s tennis team shined on Sunday with an upset victory over Tulsa.
New Mexico traveled to face San Diego State on Thursday, but the weather had different ideas. Head coach Bart Scott said the schools are working with each other and the conference to see when, or if, the match can be made up.
However, there was nothing but clear skies in Albuquerque as the men returned to face Tulsa, which was ranked number 18 in the USTA/ITA national rankings. Scott said the excitement was there from the beginning, as he watched one of his doubles pairings pull off an improbable comeback.
Hayden Sabatka and Bart Van Leijsen defeated their opponents, 6-3, but it was the second match that clinched the highly coveted doubles point and got Scott fired up.
Jorge Escutia and Ricky Hernandez-Tong teamed up in the second pairing, but found themselves down a double-break twice in the match.
Down 4-1, Escutia and Hernandez-Tong received an ample opportunity, only to give it right back to their opponents with two chances to close things out with their serve.
Somehow, the pair staved off elimination and found a way to prevail, 7-6.
“They are up 5-2, serving for the match. We break-hold-break and it goes into a tiebreaker and we win (it),” Scott said. “Getting that doubles point was key.”
Bart Van Leijsen and Jorge Escutia helped New Mexico take two of the first three singles matches and move out to a 3-1 lead in the team score. Both got off the court quick, winning in straight sets.
Sabatka let out a lot of emotion after earning the clinching point. Scott said sometimes Sabatka holds his emotions in and it was nice to see him let it go. Sabatka dropped a tight second set, but played strong in the third on his way to a 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 victory.
The win technically clinched the victory, putting New Mexico up 4-1, although the schools played out the remaining matches. The team needed it as the Lobos dropped the last two, making the final score 4-3.
Scott said the Lobos received really strong play from their one, two and three position players, but credited the other three positions for their role in the team win.
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All three of those other matches fell behind after losing the first set. Scott said the players dug in and solved problems. Hernandez-Tong and Rodolfo Jauregui forced third sets and Michael Tran was a tiebreak away from doing the same.
“Honestly, I think that was the key to allowing our one, two and three to actually get over the hump and seal the win,” Scott said. “You can lose your match and still have a very positive effect on the outcome.”
Tulsa played the match without two of its starters, which forced New Mexico to pull Augustus Ge after doubles competition.
The win improves the Lobos record to 14-13 and provides the team with a signature win over a top 25 program. New Mexico will play Nevada at home on Friday before hitting the road again to face Fresno State on Sunday.
Robert Maler is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers cross country, tennis, and track and field. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.
