Grand Canyon Times

NAU Men's Tennis advances to 3-1 with 7-0 victory to Mesa CC and heartbreaking 4-3 loss to Denver in a toe-to-toe match.

NAU started their day hosting the Mesa Community College Thunderbirds, making their mark on the courts early on in doubles play. Maikel De Boes made his debut for the Lumberjacks, starting with doubles partner Dominik Buzonics. The new duo found their chemistry quickly as the pair took down Harry Browning and Duncan Mulenga in a 6-2 match.

Piotr Galus and Alex Groves continued doubles momentum after pairing up together in both matches last week, earning a quick 6-1 victory. Following suit, Facundo Tumosa and Daniel Dillon wrapped up a 6-0 sweep at the No. 3 position to secure the doubles point for NAU, giving the Jacks the lead heading into singles play.

The singles lineup started with Tumosa at the No. 1, Galus at No. 2, De Boes at No. 3, Ziomber at No. 4, Dillon at No. 5, and Donovan at No. 6.

In his debut for NAU, De Boes brought in the second point for NAU, claiming a dominant 6-0, 6-1 victory at the No. 3. De Boes highlighted the match with multiple service breaks, bringing the newcomer to the quick win. Following closely after, Ziomber proved himself with a 6-1, 6-1 victory at the No. 4, putting NAU up 3-0. Dillon secured the victory for the Lumberjacks with a 6-0, 6-0 sweep at the No. 5. Finishing out all matches, Donovan, Galus, and Tumosa completed the sweep for NAU, putting the Jacks on top 7-0.

The Lumberjacks and the Denver Pioneers kicked things off with competitive doubles play, with the point coming down to the wire. Galus and Groves improved to 4-0 in doubles play with a quick 6-3 victory at the No. 2 spot. Tumosa and Dillon fought their way to victory in a 7-6 (7-2) match at the No. 3 spot to secure the doubles point.

NAU found itself in a close matchup, with a score of 2-2, the match came down to two third sets and a tiebreak to decide the outcome.

Groves dropped 2-5 in the first set at the No. 5 spot before inching back to a 4-5 score before falling 4-6. The senior came back to win the second in dominant fashion with a 6-1 victory, going on to win 7-6 (7-4) in the tiebreak to get the lead at 3-2 for NAU.

De Boes' first set tied up 6-6 before going on to win the tiebreak. The newcomer found himself in another 6-6 tie in the second, dropping the tiebreak 7-2, and dropping the third set 6-3 to tie the match at 3-3.

Buzonics found himself in a 6-6 tie in the first, coming back to lead 7-6 before dropping the second set 6-4. The junior went back-to-back with opponent Conner Olsen as the two headed into the tiebreak in the third. Buzonics fell in heartbreaking fashion with a tiebreak score of 11-9, as the ball just fell on the back line for Denver's victory.

The Jacks will now head on the road for a stretch of nine matches on the road, beginning in New Mexico for a doubleheader on Feb. 11. To stay up to date with NAU Men's Tennis, follow the Jacks on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Original source can be found here.