BYU falls to Boise State 6-1

BOISE, Idaho – Boise State defended its home courts Saturday, defeating BYU men’s tennis 6-1.

The Cougars (3-4, 1-0 WCC) had a doubles win from Zach Fuchs and Brigham Andrus at the No. 1 spot but ultimately lost the other two doubles matches and the doubles point. BYU’s lone singles win came from Dominik Jakovljevic, who won in three sets at No. 4 singles.

"Boise State has a solid team and we came up short today. We played very well in spots and were without Mateo Vereau," said BYU head coach Dave Porter. "Our energy was good and we are looking forward to next week. Thank you to our family and friends for their ongoing support."

FULL RESULTS

Doubles

1. Zach Fuchs/Brigham Andrus (BYU) def. John Chin/Caden Moortgat (BOI) 6-3
2. Simon Arca Costas/Michael Bott (BOI) def. Jack Barnett/Dominik Jakovljevic (BYU) 6-3
3. Jan Lucca Marquardt/Sam Sippel (BOI) def. Wally Thayne/Redd Owen (BYU) 6-2

Order of finish: 3, 1, 2

The Broncos had a quick start at No. 3 doubles, going up 2-0. Thayne and Owen recovered to keep the match close, trailing 4-2 later in the match but Marquardt and Sippel added another break to take the match 6-2.

Fuchs and Andrus secured a No. 1 doubles win with a one-break advantage to get the Cougars on the board. A 2-1 lead became 4-1 for BYU after a break and subsequent held serve. From there, both sides held their serves, with the gap enough for a 6-3 BYU win.

The doubles point was then decided at No. 2 doubles, which started out tied 2-2. Arca Costas and Bott strung together two holds to complement a break in the middle to lead 5-2. Barnett and Jakovljevic extended the match after winning the next game while serving but Boise State won the subsequent game to take the match, 6-3, along with the doubles point.

Singles

1. Sam Sippel (BOI) def. Wally Thayne (BYU) 6-4, 6-3
2. Simon Arca Costas (BOI) def. Jack Barnett (BYU) 7-5, 7-5
3. James Van Herzeele (BOI) def. Zach Fuchs (BYU) 6-4, 6-4
4. Dominik Jakovljevic (BYU) def. Idriss Haddouch (BOI) 6-2, 2-6, 7-5
5. John Chin (BOI) def. Redd Owen (BYU) 6-2, 6-2
6. Caden Moortgat (BOI) def. Brigham Andrus (BYU) 6-2, 6-3

Order of finish: 6, 5, 1, 3, 2, 4

Boise State started off strong in singles as well, taking five of the matches in straight sets. The first match to finish was No. 6 singles, where Moortgat started up 3-0 in the first set. He went on to win 6-2 before Andrus started off strong in the second with a 2-1 advantage. However, the lead was quickly erased as Moortgat won five of the final six games to take set two 6-3.

The Broncos picked up their next point at No. 5 singles. Chin started off both sets with a break to lead 2-0, adding another at the end of the first to take that set 6-2. In the second, Owen rallied to tie the set at 2-all but Chin then won four-straight games to once again win the set 6-2.

The dual match win was then secured at No. 1 singles. Thayne kept that match close throughout, holding his serve for most of the first set before finally being broken to trail 4-3. Sippel would go on to take set one 6-4 and opened set two with an early 3-1 lead. Thayne rallied for a 3-3 tie, with the comeback ultimately falling short after Sippel won three-straight games to finish the second with a 6-3 victory.

The remaining singles matches were played to the finish, with Fuchs dropping a close contest at the No. 4 spot. Both sets finished 6-4, and Fuchs only lost a game when he was serving once in each set. However, he was unable to answer with a break of his own, giving Van Herzeele the two-game advantages he needed.

Barnett came close to taking either set at No. 2 singles but ultimately lost 7-5 in both. In each set Arca Costas went up 5-3 before Barnett responded with a break and held serve for 5-all scores. But Arca Costas would subsequently hold his serve each time before winning both sets while receiving.

BYU’s lone win of the afternoon came at No. 4 singles, which was also the only match to reach a third set. Jakovljevic made a statement to open the first with a break, an advantage he would carry until the score was 4-2. He then added another break and held his serve to win set one 6-2. That was the same score Haddouch won set two by, setting the stage for a third set.

Jakovljevic once again led early after going up 3-1 in set three. Haddouch made things interesting with a break of his own to lead 4-3, with each player subsequently holding their serves to a 5-5 tie. Jakovljevic broke the tie with a break and then served for the match, winning the final game to take the set 7-5.

Today’s match was the first of an eight-match road trip for BYU. Next weekend the Cougars travel to Texas for two matches. The first is against Texas Rio Grande Valley on Friday, March 3, at 1:00 p.m. CST.