BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Sunday's win for Illinois State certainly was not an easy one, but that possibly made the result more special as the Redbirds picked up a 4-3 win over Bellarmine at the Evergreen Racquet Club to give head coach Mark Klysner his 103rd win at ISU to set the program's wins record.
"What a match today. A hard-fought battle for sure, but precisely the way I had a feeling it would go," Klysner stated. "Winning the doubles point was so clutch, otherwise this could have been a different outcome. It's obviously a very special win for me personally, so I'll cherish this one for sure."
The Redbirds would take the early lead by winning the doubles point, but it did not come easy. The No. 2 duo of Tom Bevan and Arvid Hjalte were first to win over Xavier Ecarma and Louie Fletcher by a score of 6-1. The doubles point was then won in thrilling fashion by the No. 3 duo of Caden Scarlett and Tomas Valencia who picked up a tiebreaker win 7-6 [10-8]. For good measure, the No. 1 team of Emiliano Gonzalez and Tin Ostro also battled to a 7-6 [7-4] tiebreaker win to secure the sweep for the Redbirds.
ISU picked up the early advantage in singles as well, as Ostro defeated Eli Wood 6-4, 6-1 at the No. 5 spot to make it 2-0 in favor of ISU. A victory by Bellarmine at the No. 3 spot would then trim the deficit to 2-1, before Valencia picked up a 6-0, 7-6 (7-4) victory over Xavier Ecarma to extend the ISU lead to 3-1.
The match would be clinched by Gonzalez on court No. 4, as he picked up a hard-fought 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 victory over Louie Fletcher. Bellarmine would then go on to take wins at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots to bring the score to its final at 4-3.
Illinois State will be back in action next weekend for a pair of matches in Kalamazoo, Michigan, first on Friday against Western Michigan and then on Saturday against Dayton.
FINAL SCORE: Illinois State (4), Bellarmine (3)
Doubles:
No. 1 Emiliano Gonzalez/Tin Ostro (ILS) def. Jack Batchelor/Matthew Nice (BELL) 7-6 [7-4]
No. 2 Tom Bevan/Arvid Hjalte (ILS) def. Xavier Ecarma/Louie Fletcher (BELL) 6-1
No. 3 Caden Scarlett/Tomas Valencia (ILS) def. Wynn Shioi/Eli Wood (BELL) 7-6 [10-8]
Singles:
No. 1 Jack Batchelor (BELL) def. Nam Pham (ILS) 7-5, 3-6, 6-1
No. 2 Vineet Ramesh (BELL) def. Arvid Hjalte (ILS) 6-0, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1
No. 3 Kyle Tang (BELL) def. Adrian Dibildox (ILS) 7-6 (7-5), 6-3
No. 4 Emiliano Gonzalez (ILS) def. Louie Fletcher (BELL) 7-6 (7-5), 6-3
No. 5 Tin Ostro (ILS) def. Eli Wood (BELL) 6-4, 6-1
No. 6 Tomas Valencia (ILS) def. Xavier Ecarma (BELL) 6-0, 7-6 (7-4)
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