Jan. 19, 2013
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -
Oklahoma State’s men’s tennis team couldn’t keep up with 19th-ranked Tennessee in the Cowboys’ season opener, falling 4-0.
Matt Campbell, Denys Pume, Oleksiy Arovin and Brady Bohrnstedt suited up in a Cowboy uniform for the first time, with Pume providing the only Cowboy victory in his doubles pairing with Richard Del Nunzio.
OSU (0-1) came close to earning an early doubles point after Arovin and Bohrnstedt tied up the duo’s doubles match at six. However, Tennessee’s Brandon Fickey and Hunter Reese won the next two games to close out the match and earn the doubles point.
Rifat Biktyakov challenged 19th-ranked Mikelis Libietis in the first set, but lost a crucial serve break after being tied at three games. The break proved to be costly, as Biktyakov eventually lost the set, 6-3.
Biktyakov, Haworth and Arovin each had their matches called early due to a decisive score and to rest the players before the Cowboys’ next match.
Oklahoma State will look to get back on the winning track when it faces Tennessee Tech tonight at 6 p.m.
Complete Results
#19 Tennessee 4, Oklahoma State 0
Singles
1. #19 Mikelis Libietis (TENN) vs. Rifat Biktyakov (OSU) 6-3, 4-2 uf.
2. #40 Hunter Reese (TENN) vs. Chris Haworth (OSU) 6-4, 5-2 uf.
3. Jarryd Chaplin (TENN) def. Matt Campbell (OSU) 6-1, 6-1
4. Brandon Fickey (TENN) def. Denys Pume (OSU) 6-1, 6-1
5. John Collins (TENN) def. Richard Del Nunzio (OSU) 6-2, 6-4
6. Edward Jones (TENN) vs. Oleksiy Arovin (OSU) 7-6 uf.
Doubles1. #26 Chaplin/Libietis (TENN) def. Campbell/Biktyakov (OSU) 8-4
2. Del Nunzio/Pume (OSU) def. Collins/Jones (TENN) 8-2
3. Fickey/Reese (TENN) def. Arovin/Bohrnstedt (OSU) 8-6
Order of Finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (3,4,5).
