SPRING, Texas – The University of St. Thomas men's tennis team rallied with five wins in singles play to claim a 6-3 victory over Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference opponent Schreiner.
The Celts won singles flights Nos. 2 through 6 to go along with a doubles victory to secure the win over the visiting Mountaineers.
"I was proud of the team. They fought hard today," UST head tennis coach Jack Brasington said. "I was proud of them for how they recovered from the setback in doubles with their strong performance in singles play."
UST won singles flights 2, 3, and 4 in straight sets. Jace Ware cruised to a victory over Schreiner's Austin Cervantes, winning by 6-1 and 6-2. Shortly after that, UST's Dorian Cudina recorded a 6-4, 6-1 triumph over Mario Gallinar in flight four.
The Celts moved closer to the match victory after Tyler Head fended off Schreiner's Dennis Miller in flight two, winning 6-4, 6-2. Andrew True then clinched the victory for the Celts with a hard-fought, three-set win over Jonathan Barragan in flight five; True won by scores of 6-3, 2-6, 6-4.
UST claimed its first point of the match with an exciting 8-7 win in flight two as Tyler Head and Carson Steele turned away Miller and Gallinar. The UST duo won the tiebreaker 8-6, thus salvaging one of the three doubles points and needing only four wins in singles play.
Steele was the victor in flight six when his Schreiner opponent retired early.
The Celts remained undefeated in home matches with the win against fellow Division III opponents this season. UST was the designated home team at host despite not playing at their usual home at Memorial Park; Saturday's match was contested at Giammalva's Racquet Club in Spring.
Brasington also noted that he was proud of his team for giving a spirited performance on such a warm day. "The conditions were tough today. This is probably the hottest day in which we've competed," he said. "It affected both teams, but I'm proud of the team in how they played and overcame the deficit and adverse conditions."
The Celts return to action Saturday, April 9, when they host Southwestern in a SCAC competition. The match will begin with doubles play at 10 a.m. at the Memorial Park Tennis Center.
