NIU men’s tennis began its season Friday against the Purdue University Boilermakers. The Huskies failed to win a single or a double set, falling to Purdue by a score of 7-0.
“We competed with great energy from start to finish,” said NIU men’s tennis head coach René Vidal. “In doubles, we were right there and the scores in singles don’t reflect how competitive we were individually. Our focus is now on our next match.”
The Huskies were swept in doubles play, an indicator of the rest of the match. Sophomores Sam Klein and Saul Berdullas were defeated by Purdue redshirt senior Daniel Labrador and sophomore Juan David Velasquez in a 6-4 set.
Huskie freshman Chiao Bo Suo Nan and sophomore Angus Howard were bested 6-2 by Purdue sophomore Stefan Simeunovic and freshman Nour Fathalla.
The top doubles contest saw the pairing of NIU junior Iker Gaztambide Arrastia and junior Federico Scotuzzi facing off against Purdue junior Aleksa Krivokapic and freshman Maj Premzl. The match was locked 5-5 when it was called. In singles play, Arrastia faced off against Krivokapic, but ultimately fell in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2.
Scotuzzi lost decisively against Purdue sophomore Henrik Villanger in 6-3, 6-0 sets.
Velasco was defeated by Fathalla, losing 6-2, 6-3.
The only unfinished singles match featured Berdullas, who faced Simeunovic.
At the time play was halted, Berdullas was trailing 0-1 in the third set, after winning the first set 6-4 and dropping the second by a score of 4-6.
UP NEXT
NIU will have a quick turnaround facing the Indiana University Indianapolis Jaguars at 3 p.m. Saturday in Indianapolis, Indiana.