Raiders clash with Colonials

Thursday, January 28

Washington, D.C.

11 a.m.

Middle Tennessee

George Washington

1/28/2016 5:52:00 PM | Men's Tennis

MT wins first road match of the year

By: Matt Posey, @MTAthletics

WASHINGTON – Middle Tennessee started off their first road trip of the year on a positive note, defeating George Washington 5-2 in the nation's capital on Thursday.

The Colonials are coming off of a conference championship winning season in the Atlantic 10, finishing with a record of 13-13 in 2015 and ending the season with a loss to Wake Forest in the NCAA Tournament. It was the first home loss George Washington suffered since their season opener in 2014, when they were defeated by BYU, 4-3.

George Washington won the first point of the match by taking the doubles point. No. 1 doubles was won by the Colonials by a score of 6-2. Gian Issa and Miguel Negre Fernandez teamed up to take a 6-2 win at No. 2 doubles, making No. 3 doubles the deciding match. The Colonials took that match 6-2 and jumped out to a 1-0 lead.

Issa had a dominant day in singles play, defeating his opponent at the No. 3 spot, 6-1, 6-2. Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore followed that up at No. 2 with a 6-2, 6-4 win of his own.

Tying the match up at two points apiece was George Washington's Chris Reynolds, who defeated Robin Riethmueller in a close contest, 6-4, 6-4.

MT took the lead back for good with a win by Dima Zyhmantovich at No. 1, 6-4, 6-3. The match was clinched at No. 6 singles by Negre Fernandez, who won by a score of 7-6 (7-4), 6-4.

Reigning Conference USA Male Tennis Athlete of the Week Ayed Zatar Cordero finished off the day with a 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 victory at the No. 4 spot.

"The guys showed me that we are resilient today and it was a great team win," head coach Jimmy Borendame said. "The best part is that I can see this young team improving and we are playing with a growth mindset. I'm proud of our guys."

The Blue Raiders improved to 2-1 on the season with that 5-2 win over the Colonials. Next up on the schedule for MT is a battle with Penn on Jan. 30 to end the two game road trip.

The Quakers are 1-2 on the year so far, beating Navy at home and losing to East Tennessee State and Washington on the road.

Middle Tennessee vs George Washington
Jan 28, 2016 at Washington, DC
(Southeast Tennis Center)
Middle Tennessee 5, George Washington 2

Singles competition
1. Dima Zyhmantovic (MT) def. Julius Tverijonas (GW) 6-4, 6-3
2. Gonzalo Morell (MT) def. Danil Zelenkov (GW) 6-2, 6-4
3. Gian Issa (MT) def. C. Hadjigeorgiou (GW) 6-1, 6-2
4. Ayed Zatar Cordero (MT) def. Chris Fletcher (GW) 5-7, 6-2, 6-1
5. Chris Reynolds (GW) def. Robin Riethmueller (MT) 6-4, 6-4
6. Miguel Negre (MT) def. Cahit Kapukiran (GW) 7-6 (6-4), 6-4

Doubles competition
1. Julius Tverijonas/Danil Zelenkov (GW) def. Gonzalo Morell/Ayed Zatar Cordero (MT) 6-2
2. Gian Issa/Miguel Negre (MT) def. Chris Fletcher/C. Hadjigeorgiou (GW) 6-2
3. Cahit Kapukiran/Chris Reynolds (GW) def. Dima Zyhmantovic/Luis Morillo Diaz (MT) 6-2

Match Notes:
Middle Tennessee 2-1
George Washington 0-1
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (3,2,5,1,6,4)