AVE MARIA, Fla. — The Ave Maria Men's Tennis team played their first home match of the season Wednesday and got a nice win over RV Florida National 4-1. The Gyrenes opened the season with three matches on the road and were excited to play their first match in sunny southwest Florida.
The Gyrenes took the doubles point to open the match, winning the first and third pairings. Anderson Duggan and Joao Felipe Almeida were the top pair for the Gyrenes and won their first set as a pair, 6-3. Juan Garcia and Pedro Garcia teamed up in the third pair and got their second doubles win of the year, also winning 6-3.
In the singles round, Duggan was the first to finish, winning his match 6-3, 6-2. The graduate student from Michigan is 3-1 in singles matches in the spring season this year.
Florida National got their lone point of the match, winning the fifth pairing to make the score 2-1.
Not long after FNU got on the board, Gianmarco Punzo brought the Gyrenes one point closer to winning by taking the sixth pairing. Punzo won 6-3, 6-1 for his first singles win of the year.
Pedro Garcia closed the match out for the Gyrenes in the second pairing winning 6-2, 6-3. Garcia also hit three wins in singles matches this year, matching Duggan.
Juan Garcia was ahead in the fourth pairing and Andreu Solvia was locked in the third set when Pedro Garcia clinched the match for Ave Maria.
"The best part about today was that the guys showed up," said head coach Barrett Elkins following the match. "[They were] believing in themselves, feeling like they were the team that was supposed to win. Even when there was a time it could have gone either way, looking at the eyes of our players, every one of them thought that they were going to be the individual that was going to pull out the match. Teams like that, in the long run, will be able to pull out more wins when they are close."
With the win, Ave Maria starts off conference play 1-0 and improves their overall record to 2-2.
The Gyrenes are on the road for the next two weeks, taking out four teams all on a neutral court in Orlando.
"[These matches] will bring us together. Just the car rides, just being able to go out to eat together. To spend this time together is sometimes able to change the season in a way that can just turn it around for even better than the start we've had. I'm excited to get out there, excited for them to have these trips, excited to get them out there, get some other people out on the court who have been itching for some opportunities and give them the chances and see what they can do out there too," said Elkins.
The first of these neutral site matches against Wayne State from Michigan Wednesday, March 5. It will be the first ever meeting between the Gyrenes and the Warriors on the court.
