DALLAS, TX- On Friday the Western New Mexico University men's tennis team opened the Texas Wesleyan Invite with competitive singles and doubles action in Dallas. the Mustangs battled throughout the opening day.
The Mustangs have three players still competing in the singles Main draw with Alvaro Fernandez Caceres (Badajoz, Spain/Colegio Santa Maria Assumpta) having a strong performance for the Mustangs, earning a 7-5, 7-6(1) victory in his opening round. Fernandez Caceres continued his run in the second round with a convincing 6-1, 6-0 win to advance to the main draw.
Olivier Hutton (Saint-Pierre, France/Centre National d'Enseignement a Distance) also went undefeated in singles, opening with a 6-4, 6-1 victory before posting a dominant 6-0, 6-0 win to advance to the next round in the main draw.
Also continuing in the Main draw, we have Markuss Oto Meidrops (Ikskile, Latvia/Ikskiles Highschool) opened his tournament with a 6-0, 6-0 victory. In his second match. Meidrops battled back after dropping the first set. Winning 4-6, 6-3, 10-4.
David Guta (Bucharest, Romania/Liceul Teoretic C.A. Rosetti) earned a 6-1, 6-2 victory in his opening match before falling into a hard-fought battle, 5-7, 6-0, 6-10.
Matisse Pierre (Nantes, France/IUT GEA Nantes) opened with a close 6-7, 4-6 loss before responding with an 8-0 victory in his next match.
Benjamin Vriens started the day with a 6-3, 6-2 win before falling 0-6, 1-6.
Djamel-Dine Bey (Paris, France/National Centre for Distance Education (Online)) opened with a 6-3, 6-3 victory before falling 6-7(7-9), 1-6 in his second match.
Christopher Lund-Kuhl (Vaerloese, Denmark/Kruses Gymnasium) fought through his matches, falling 4-6, 4-6 in his opening match before dropping his second match 6-8. Nico Lackner (Salzburg, Austria/Bundesgymnasium Seekirchen) competed in doubles action for the Mustangs.
In doubles, Pierre and Fernandez earned a 6-4 victory, while Lund-Kuhl and Meidrops also won 6-4. Lackner and Bey added a 6-3 victory, with all three pairs advancing to the main draw.
Head Coach Jesus Baltazar highlighted the fight shown by the Mustangs throughout the opening day.
"The biggest takeaway from today was the way everyone fought on the court. We have three newcomers that have made it to the third round of the tournament. This is pretty exciting for us and what we can do as a team. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone compete tomorrow and leaving it all out on the court. I'm excited about doubles as all of our doubles match ups except for one made it to the second round!"
All nine Mustangs will return to competition Saturday in Dallas as the Texas Wesleyan Invite continues.
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Western New Mexico University is a member of the NCAA Division II, and the Lone Star Conference (LSC). For additional information regarding Mustang Athletics, visit www.wnmumustangs.com; visit wnmu.edu for more information about Western New Mexico University. Follow the Mustangs on social media: @WNMUathletics (X, TikTok & Instagram).
