Men's Tennis Weekly Release

Seniors Come Through in Victory over Duquesne

Alejandro Galindo

UB (5-4) defeated visiting Duquesne University, 7-0, Saturday night at the Village Glen Tennis Center. Prior to the match, UB honored its senior class of Alejandro Galindo (Torreon, Mexico/Preparatoria Tec), Matt Kennedy (Mississauga, Ontario/Erindale), Joe Popielarczyk (Buffalo, NY/McKinley) and Mike Zappone (Queensbury, NY/Queensbury). Coach Russ Crispell gave the class a chance to shine as the three doubles teams included the four players.

Kennedy and Zappone Clinch Doubles Point

Mike Zappone

UB opened play by taking two of three doubles matches to earn the first point. The point was secured as the number three team of Kennedy and Zappone were forced to go to a tiebreaker against Duquesne’s Michael Belmonte and Rob Ojeda. The UB duo, playing for the first time together this season, pulled out the 7-3 tiebreaker to win the pro-set match, 9-8, giving the Bulls a 1-0 lead. UB got into position to claim the doubles point as the number two team of Galindo and Nikesh Singh Panthlia (George Town, Malaysia/BMK Penang Free School) breezed past Michael Ortega and Blake Williams, 8-1.

Undefeated at Singles, Thanks to the Tiebreakers

Matt Kennedy

The singles matches were tighter than the scores would indicate with the number one and two matches being decided in third-set super-tiebreakers. Both matches were finished after UB had clinched the overall victory. At number one, Mike Rockman (Toronto, Ontario/Thornlea) trailed Devon Peightal throughout much of the 90-minute first set but forced a tiebreaker, eventually falling 8-6 after leading 6-4. From there, Rockman righted the ship and blew past Peightal, 6-1 in the second set and 10-3 in the super-tiebreaker. Singh Panthlia also had his hands full with Ortega, dropping the opening set, 6-4, before winning a 7-5 second-set tiebreaker and setting up the super-tiebreaker which Singh Panthlia won 10-8. The remainder of the matches were won by the Bulls in straight sets. At number three, Hadisubroto downed Paul Clough, 6-3, 6-4. Kennedy scored a “double-bagel” win over Townsend, 6-0, 6-0, at number four. Number five Albert Alant (Pretoria, South Africa/Niskayuna (NY)) knocked off Ojeda, 6-4, 6-3 while number six Fred Duncan (East Amherst, NY/Nichols) breezed past Williams, 6-4, 6-1.