GCU comes up short in battle with U of A

Sunday, February 12

Tucson, AZ

3 PM

Grand Canyon

Arizona

2/13/2017 4:46:00 PM | Men's Tennis

By: Samantha Fell

TUCSON, Ariz. – In a wild match that included a rain delay, GCU came up just short in its bid to upset the in-state powerhouse Arizona Wildcats. Competition between the teams began on Sunday, but was suspended due to weather, and completed today. The Lopes led U of A 3-1 before the delay but fell by an overall team score of 4-3 when play concluded. Grand Canyon now has a record of 5-3 for the season.

"The guys played their hearts out this weekend," head coach Greg Prudhomme said. "Today's loss against U of A is a tough one to swallow due to how close we came to the win. Maybe we had a little bad luck with the match getting suspended last night with us so close to the finish line, but I give credit to U of A for their fight."

On Sunday, the Lopes looked likely to earn the team win over the Wildcats. GCU won the doubles point as two pairs of teammates emerged victorious. Philip Kuehnen and Adrian Legarreta first defeated a pair of Wildcats in the first position by a score of 6-2. Lorenzo Fucile and Valentin Lang also won by a score of 6-2 at No. 3 doubles.

In singles play, Legarreta earned another victory at No. 3. He quickly defeated Reguant of Arizona by scores of 6-2, 6-1. Lang also won his second contest of the day at No. 6 singles when he outlasted Plaskett of Arizona in three sets, winning 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. With those victories, the Lopes led 3-1 before the match was suspended.

When play resumed today, Fucile, Mathieu Rajaonah, and Justin Cvitanovic all dropped three-set matches that allowed U of A to take the team victory.

"As tough as the loss is, I believe that defining moments can come from hard fought losses as well as good wins and I believe this is one of them," Prudhomme added. "I know our guys are much stronger having come so close to some of the strongest teams in the country. We'll take the valuable experience we gained and work even harder."

GCU will play their first home match of the spring season on Wednesday, Feb. 15 as Western New Mexico comes to town. Play will begin at 2 p.m. at the new on-campus GCU Tennis Facility.

Arizona 4, Grand Canyon University 3

Singles competition
1. Meparidze, Shoti (ARIZ) def. Francois Musitelli (GCU) 2-6, 6-2, 6-2
2. Kneale, Will (ARIZ) def. Mathieu Rajaonah (GCU) 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
3. Adrian Legarreta (GCU) def. Reguant, Alejandro (ARIZ) 6-2, 6-1
4. Botha, Trent (ARIZ) def. Lorenzo Fucile (GCU) 3-6, 7-5, 6-4
5. Kasahara, Shoki (ARIZ) def. Justin Cvitanovic (GCU) 6-7, 6-2, 6-2
6. Valentin Lang (GCU) def. Plaskett, Oliver (ARIZ) 6-3, 1-6, 6-2

Doubles competition
1. Philip Kuehnen/Adrian Legarreta (GCU) def. Kneale, Will/Meparidze, Shoti (ARIZ) 6-2
2. Botha, Trent/Plaskett, Oliver (ARIZ) def. Mathieu Rajaonah/Gregoire Balenci (GCU) 4-3
3. Lorenzo Fucile/Valentin Lang (GCU) def. Reguant, Alejandro/Kasahara, Shoki (ARIZ) 6-2

Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (3,1,6,4,2,5)