Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Friday, February 15
Murfreesboro, TN
5 PM
Middle Tennessee
4
vs
3
Rice
Blue Raiders Edge Rice in C-USA Opener
2/15/2019 11:03:00 PM | Men's Tennis
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee (4-5, 1-0) won a tightly contested match over Conference USA foe Rice 4-3 thanks to Pavel Motl's three-set thriller Friday night at Adams Tennis Complex.
Motl clinched the Blue Raider win by first taking the opening set 6-3 before losing the second, forcing a decisive third. After Chris Edge fell in a three-set tiebreaker on court five to tie the score at 3, it was all up to Motl on court six. He would finish strong, taking the final set 6-1 to earn the Blue Raider win.
Tom Moonen and Edge continued their winning ways in doubles with a 6-4 win on court one. After Gonzalo Morell and Motl took an early 4-0 lead on court three, the Owls battled back to tie it up at 4-4. The Blue Raider pair would break twice to claim the doubles point.
Heading into singles down 1-0, the Owls responded by winning the first two matches on courts one and three. Freshman Stijn Slump then earned a dominant 6-2, 6-2 win on court two to tie the score, and Max Rauch followed with straight set win of his own to give MT the lead again, 3-2.
On court five, Edge fell in a tight set one but would battle back in exciting fashion to force a thrilling third set. He would fall in tiebreaker 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (8-6) leaving it all on Motl to clinch the victory.
Up Next
The Blue Raiders will continue their homestand with a doubleheader Sunday, the first match starting at 11 a.m. against South Alabama. They will follow with a 3 p.m. swing against Alabama A&M.
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Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,1,3
#1 Singles Match
12
Sumit Sarkar / 0 [RICE]
66
03
#2 Singles Match
12
Jacob Eskeland / 0 [RICE]
22
66
#3 Singles Match
12
Eric Rutledge / 0 [RICE]
66
12
#4 Singles Match
12
Conrad Russell / 0 [RICE]
25
67
#5 Singles Match
123
Adam Oscislawski / 0 [RICE]
627
466
#6 Singles Match
123
Campbell Salmon / 0 [RICE]
361
646
Order of Finish:
1,3,2,4,5,6
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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