Men's Tennis Falters in First Conference Match

SALT LAKE -- In its conference opener against No. 50 TCU, the BYU men’s tennis team dropped a 5-2 result at the Eccles Tennis Center. The Cougars fell to 12-9 on the season and 0-1 against Mountain West opponents.

The Horned Frogs won the doubles point after a victory on court one by the No. 31 tandem in the country. At the No. 2 position, sophomores Daniel Hwang and Thomas Shubert pushed the No. 20 pair but eventually fell 8-6. The Cougars were able to record one victory, an 8-6 win on court three by Cassidy Mears and Evan Urbina.

“We did a good job at No. 3 doubles,” BYU coach Brad Pearce said. “We had multiple opportunities at No. 2 and we were unable to capitalize on them.”

TCU’s Kriegler Brink started off scoring in singles with a straight-set win on court three. A clash of freshmen at the No. 1 position ended in another Horned Frog win after No. 62 Slah Mbarek defeated Roman Warias. TCU secured the victory after taking matches on courts five and six.

Notching wins for the Cougars were Shubert and Mears, at the No. 2 and No. 4 positions respectively.

“It’s obvious where guys stepped up today,” Pearce said.

The team will continue conference play Friday against No. 54 Utah and Saturday against No. 65 UNLV. Pearce said the team is looking forward to competing with its in-state rival.

“We’re hoping to get a great performance at every position Friday,” Pearce said.

Friday’s match begins at 1 p.m. at the Liberty Park Tennis Center depending on weather. In the event of inclement weather, matches will be played at the Eccles Tennis Center.

Match Results
No. 50 TCU- 5 
BYU- 2
Doubles
1. #31 Kriegler Brink/Slah Mbarek (TCU) def. Roman Warias/Georgy Batrakov (BYU), 8-4
2. #20 Emanuel Brighiu/Adrian Simon (TCU) def. Thomas Shubert/Daniel Hwang (BYU), 8-6
3. Cassidy Mears/Evan Urbina (BYU) def. Zach Nichols/Christopher Price (TCU), 8-6
Singles
1. #62 Slah Mbarek (TCU) def. Roman Warias (BYU), 6-1, 6-4
2. Thomas Shubert (BYU) def. #110 Emanuel Brighiu (TCU), 7-5, 6-3
3. #76 Kriegler Brink (TCU) def. Evan Urbina (BYU), 6-1, 6-1
4. Cassidy Mears (BYU) def. Zach Nichols (TCU), 6-4, 6-0
5. Christopher Price (TCU) def. Georgy Batrakov (BYU), 6-4, 6-4
6. Casey Powers (TCU) def. Daniel Hwang (BYU), 6-4, 7-6(0)