GCU takes 2 over Montana State, Hawaii

Friday, February 14

Phoenix, Ariz.

2 p.m.

Grand Canyon

Montana State

2/16/2025 9:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Lopes led by ingles success from underclassmen

By: Braden Dohrmann

The Grand Canyon men's tennis team moved to 5-2 with a pair of home dual wins this weekend.

GCU beats Montana State 5-2

GCU came out on top with a 5-2 victory over Montana State on Friday evening, moving the team to 4-2.

After a hard-fought loss to DePaul the previous week, the Lopes were able to grind their way into a doubles sweep. Court 2 took care of business as GCU freshmen Andreas Loizas and Diordan Macababbad won in a dominant 6-1 fashion. Shortly after on Court 3, senior Jonathan Da Silva and graduate Matteo Lugari grabbed a 7-5 victory in their first time playing as a duo. Following the clinch for the doubles point on Court 3, the match on Court 1 was declared unfinished going into a tiebreaker.

GCU immediately went to work in singles, where the Ole Miss transfer, sophomore Brice Patoux, won his first set 6-1 and clinched the win with a blistering 6-0 sweep in the second. The momentum continued on Court 1, where sophomore Nikita Volonski beat the Bobcats' Dmitry Bezborodov 6-1, 6-4.

After grabbing three straight points from the Bobcats, the Lopes looked to secure the victory on Courts 4 and 6. Loizas, who is tied for most singles victories on the team, had a hard-fought battle winning the first set 7-5 and secured the second set 6-3. Back on Court 6, Macababbad grabbed his second singles victory by winning 6-4 in both sets. This win kept Macababbad unbeaten in his singles career for the Lopes.

GCU beats Hawai'i 4-3

GCU claimed a 4-3 victory over Hawai'i on Saturday afternoon at GCU Tennis Facility.

The Lopes clinched the match at 4-1 before the Rainbow Warriors grabbed the final two points. GCU moved to 5-2 on the season.

The doubles point was going the Lopes direction from the get-go. Patoux and Volonski won 6-3 on Court 1, while Da Silva and Lugari did the same on Court 3 to clinch the point.

In singles, GCU won three of the first four courts to finish, all in straight sets. Macababbad won 6-2, 6-2 on Court 6, propelling him to 3-0 on the season. Loizas took care of Court 4 to move to 5-2 in singles in his first college season. Volonski clinched the match, moving to 5-1 on the season with a 6-4, 6-2 win on Court 1.

The Lopes will be back in action Monday at 10 a.m. (Phoenix time) to take on UC San Diego at GCU Tennis Facility.