The No. 6 ranked women’s tennis team continues to be unbeaten in conference, starting the spring season off with a 3-0 record at the Eager Tennis Center.
This weekend the Wildcats swept No. 20 Tarleton State, Incarnate Word, and forced a 9-0 win over No. 10 Rollins College.
“We had a great weekend of tennis, No. 3 ranked Julia Mongin said. “We knew we were going to play good teams, so we went out there and gave 100 percent on every point.”
After three matches, the ‘Cats remained undefeated in doubles. No. 21 Micah Hermsdorf and and Hannah Kelley beat Lisa Loft and Kayli Ragsdale 9-8, maintaining their win streak, and keeping Rollins out of the singles play.
In singles, Mongin was easily in first place after a 6-0 and 6-1 win over Loft. Micah Hermsdorf defeated Stefania Tkach 6-1, 6-1. Laura Mongin, Brittney Reed, and Kelley also took over the singles competition, continually winning in straight sets.
“We stayed tough and competitive until the end, and it showed up in the final score,” Mongin said. “We have a great team this year. I’m very happy to be a part of ACU tennis. We have such good teammates and coaches.”
The men’s team got off to a good start in conference as well, taking No. 28 Incarnate Word 7-2.
The Wildcats won two out of three doubles matches. Top ranked duo Hans Hach and Guilherme Gesser beat Aiden DeLeon and Carlos Overa 8-4, No. 3 Nick and Kyle Plum devastated Chris Lawson Leory Arias with an 8-1 set.
In singles, six ‘Cats had success on the court. After winning his first set 6-1, Hach fell 4-6 against Overa. But he was able to come back in the final set 6-4. Hach is now 9-2 in singles.
“Playing at home is a privilege, Hach said. The scoreboard said we beat Incarnate Word 7-2, but it was truly tougher than it looked.”
Plum was also successful against Arias. After losing the first set 2-6, he came back to sweep the final two sets 6-4, 6-4.
Gesser also came back to beat Brandon Davis after a 3-6 loss with two wins 0f 6-2. Michael Morris defeated Luke Trautmann 2-6, 6-1, 6-2, and Borja Cortes took on David Ballenger for 6-2, 7-5 win.
“We all showed some toughness on the court,” Hach said. “We had a few three setters and won them all.”
However, the men’s tennis team didn’t see the same success this weekend as they travelled to College Station.
The team winning streak was broken Saturday as the Wildcats lost five straight singles sets, and three doubles. Hans Hach was the only successful ‘Cat, defeating Collin Hoover of Texas A&M in a three-set comeback. (4-6, 6-3, 12-10) The win raises Hach’s season record to 9-2.
“Texas A&M is very tough to beat,” Hach said. “They have six very good players that will not let themselves breakdown.”
Despite the overall sweep, Hach’s win for ACU is still a huge accomplishment on the Division I level. Texas A&M is currently ranked 15th nationally.
“I was able to win at the No. 1 spot, but it took at lot of effort and hard work,” Hach said. “I had a good day because I remained tough and confident. I don’t think I could have won that day if I didn’t play with the right attitude and perspective.”
The Wildcats record falls 8-5 following the weekend.
Both of the tennis teams will return to action this weekend as they take on St. Edwards at home.
“We are all looking forward to our matches this weekend,” said Mongin. “It’s always great to play at home.”
