Borendame gets 100th win at MT in Shootout Weekend

Friday, March 31

Murfreesboro, Tenn. - Adams Tennis Complex

2 PM

Middle Tennessee

No. 47 South Alabama

4/2/2017 5:39:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Jimmy Borendame on 100 Wins

Blue Raiders win over Valpo and UAB

By: @MTAthletics

MT vs. South Alabama box score
MT vs. Valpo box score
MT vs. UAB box score

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Head coach Jimmy Borendame led Middle Tennessee into the MT Shootout weekend two wins shy of 100 in his tenure at MT, and wins over Valpo and UAB gave Borendame the milestone victory.

"I'm excited, but at the end of the day, I try to make sure I serve the student-athletes and help them as much as I can," Borendame said about the win. "It's a cool milestone, but we've got to keep moving."

Against No. 47 South Alabama to kick off the weekend, Tom Moonen and Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore dominated at No. 1 doubles, 6-1, but the Jaguars came from behind to win at No. 2 doubles in a tiebreak and clinch the first point in the match.

In singles action, the Jaguars kept their momentum going by winning in straight sets on courts one, four and six. Despite the 4-0 final score, the Blue Raiders were up a set on the remaining courts, which were unable to finish.

Moonen and Morell were again able to give the Blue Raiders some momentum out of the gate on Saturday against Valpo, winning 6-3 at No. 1 doubles, followed by a win at No. 3 by Nicolas Buitrago Machado and Max Rauch, 6-2, to clinch the first point in the match.

The Crusaders tied the match at one point apiece after winning in straight sets at the top spot in the lineup, but Miguel Negre Fernandez cruised to a 6-3, 6-3 win at No. 3 to put MT back on top. Gian Issa then won the match at No. 5 in three sets to give MT three points.

After Valpo struck back at No. 6 with a three-set win, Moonen closed out the 4-2 win over the Crusaders with a win in three sets, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4. The loss was Valpo's second of the season, dating back to late January.

In the weekend finale against Conference USA foe UAB, Moonen and Morell were again first to finish in doubles, capping off a perfect weekend at the top doubles spot and giving them a six-match win streak. They were followed in doubles by Issa and Negre at No. 3, who took their match, 6-4.

"Gian has had a little bit of a roller coaster this semester, and we tried to do some extra fitness outside of practice, and his game is coming around," Borendame added. "He's starting to see the writing on the wall that he's a junior, and I think he's figured it out."

Issa and Morillo quickly won their singles matches against the Blazers to give MT a 3-0 lead in the match. UAB got on the board with a straight-set win at No. 3, but Buitrago came away with the match-clinching point with a 6-2, 7-6 (7-5) win at the bottom of the lineup.

"Nicolas did well this weekend. He got a little nervous at the end, but he's striking the ball well," Borendame said of the freshman. "We've got some depth on our team with Max [Rauch], Nicolas and Jacob [Pugh]. They battle each other in practice all the time."

Morell was unable to finish at the top spot of the Blue Raiders' lineup, but was one game away from getting the win over UAB. Moonen forced a third set in his match at No. 2 and was leading in the deciding set when Buitrago clinched the win.

Next up for the Blue Raiders is a two-match swing in Virginia against VCU on Friday, followed by a match on Saturday at William & Mary.

Stay tuned to @MT_MensTennis on Twitter and MTSU Men's Tennis on Facebook throughout the season for updates and information on the squad.