AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University men's tennis team won their third match in a row on Saturday afternoon, handling the No. 25 ranked team in the nation, the SCAD-Savannah Bees, 5-2 at the AMU Tennis Complex in Ave Maria. The Gyrenes won seven of the day's nine matches, including a sweep in doubles play. It marked AMU's third victory of the year over a nationally recognized foe, and gave the Gyrenes a key Sun Conference win, their second of 2022.

Despite sweeping the three doubles matches, the Gyrenes had to sweat for it, with the most lopsided match being a 6-4 win by Fernando Orihuela and Sebastian Grijalva at the number two flight. At the top spot, Gustavo Cruz and Bruno Duarte went into the tiebreaker with Mary Tryakshin and Nicola Buffo, but emerged victorious with a 7-6(6) win. At the number three position, Carlos Thireau and Guilherme Bento battled for a 7-5 win over Liam Stoica and Rodrigo Zapata.

Ave Maria's win was sealed by victories at the bottom four flights of singles play, all of which were done in decisive fashion. Fernando Orihuela took a 6-2, 6-2 win at the number three spot, while Sebastian Grijalva did the same at the fourth position. The most dominant win of the day was provided by Guilherme Bento, a 6-0, 6-2 winner over Eddie Wade at the number five spot. Carlos Thireau finished up the win with a 6-1, 6-3 triumph over Rodrigo Zapata at the number six position. 

The best match of the day came at the number one singles spot, as Gustavo Cruz battled Mark Tryakshin. Tryakshin won 7-5 in the first set, but Cruz battled back to take a 7-5 win of his own in the second set. It was SCAD's top player that emerged with the win in the third set, topping Cruz 6-2. SCAD's other win was powered by Liam Stoica, who won the first set at the second spot, 6-4, before retirement by Bruno Duarte ended the match. 

The Gyrenes, the number 17 team in the nation in the newest NAIA Coaches' Poll, are right back in the court on Sunday morning, hosting the Lions of Eastern Nazarene College, an NCAA Division III program from Massachusetts. The Lions currently hold a 6-2 record, and are playing their second of five matches in the state of Florida. Opening serve from the AMU Tennis Complex is scheduled for 11 a.m.