DENVER -- It was a hard-fought battle between two unbeaten teams on Friday night, with the No. 60 BYU men's tennis team recording a 4-3 upset victory over No. 53 Denver. With the win the Cougars improve to a perfect 7-0 on the season, while snapping the Pioneers' six-match winning streak.

BYU secured the doubles point with opening wins on courts two and three. Evan Urbina and Spencer Smith defeated their Denver opponents 8-5 to start the night. Daniel Hwang and Georgy Batrakov were next to follow with a close 9-8 win.

Both teams won three points in singles play, with Urbina starting things off once again. He posted a 6-0, 6-4 win over DU's David Simson. Batrakov pulled out a 7-6, 7-5 win on court four to give BYU a 3-0 overall lead.

The Pioneers recorded consecutive three-set wins at the Nos. 6, 5 and 1 positions to tie the match, 3-3.

After losing the first set 7-6, senior Cassidy Mears showed his experience as he came back to win the following two, claiming a 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 win over DU freshman, Fabio Biasion. Mears' individual victory also clinched the overall win for BYU.

The Cougars continue play in Denver on Saturday with a match against Drake scheduled for 7 p.m. MT.

Tennis Match Results
BYU vs Denver Pioneers - Men
Feb 12, 2010 at Denver, Colo.
 
#60 BYU 4, #53 Denver Pioneers - Men 3
Doubles
1. Landwerlen/Simson def Shubert/Mears 8-7
2. Urbina/Smith def Weihs/Vorkefeld 8-5
3. Hwang/Batrakov def. Bonin/Biasion 9-8
Order of Finish 2,3,1
 
Singles
1. Weihs def Shubert 4-6 7-6, 6-3
2. Urbina def Simson 6-0 6-4
3. Mears def Biasion 6-7 6-3 7-6
4. Batrakov def Bonin 7-6 7-5
5. Landwerlen def Warias 6-3 4-6 6-4
6. Vorkefeld def 4-6 6-2 6-2
Order of Finish 2,4,6,5,1,3

PROVO -- With a 6-0 record, the No. 62 BYU men’s tennis team will travel to Colo. to face off against No. 63 Denver Friday and Drake Saturday.

“We’re not getting caught up in our ranking or record, as a team or individually,” BYU coach Brad Pearce said. “We’re focusing on having effective practices and it seems to be working.”

Friday will bring a strong Denver team that also owns a 6-0 record. The Pioneers spent last week upsetting No. 57 Middle Tennessee 6-1 and No. 50 New Mexico 4-3. Last year, DU fell in a close 4-3 bout in Provo, but home-court advantage can make a big difference for this Denver squad. While the Cougars lead 6-3 in the overall record, they have never been able to come away with a win in Denver.

“Denver has had a good season so far,” Pearce said. “It will be a tough battle and hopefully we’ll be well-prepared.”

The following day BYU will take on Drake. The two teams haven’t met since the 2000-2001 season when the Cougars earned the 5-2 win. The Bulldogs are 2-0 this spring after defeating Northern Illinois and Memphis over the weekend.

“We have high goals for the season,” Pearce said. “The team showed me last week that they still want more and that makes me feel like we have a good chance of accomplishing those goals.”

First serve against Denver is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday and the match versus Drake begins at 6 p.m. Saturday. Both matches will be played at the Colorado Athletic Club-Inverness.