Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
Florida Atlantic
Men's Tennis defeated by Florida Atlantic
03/10/2010 | 12:00:00 | Men's Tennis
March 10, 2010
By Michael Benson
www.SIUSalukis.com
BOCA RATON, Fla. - The Saluki men's tennis team ended their Sunshine State swing on a sour note, falling to Florida Atlantic, 7-0, Wednesday in Boca Raton, Fla.
Similar to Tuesday's match, Southern was close, but couldn't pull out wins in their doubles matches - most notably in second doubles. The loss set the tone for the remainder of the match.
"We had a match point at No. 2 doubles which would have given us the doubles point," said Saluki head coach Dann Nelson. "We were unable to convert the match and it really deflated us in singles."
In that match, freshmen Brandon Florez and Chikara Kidera were on the brink of taking their match. However, FAU's Derek Madon and Joshua Scholl had other ideas, as they were able to extend the match and eventually win, 9-7.
Southern did capture third doubles, as Mpilo Migogo and Anton Leonenko won a close match with the Owls' Matthew Braunworth and Ervin Garibovic, 8-6.
"Not winning the doubles point today was hard to swallow since our second and third doubles teams played so well," Nelson said. "We have to have all of our teams show up if we want to win doubles points against good teams."
Singles was a struggle for Southern, as none of the Salukis were able to capture a single set.
Even more devastating, though, was the loss of Migogo, who was forced to retire after an injury sidelined the senior. There is no word on the severity of the injury and how long the Zimbabwean will have to sit out.
The Saluki men will have over a week to regroup before their next match - a March 19 tilt with Saint Louis. The Dawgs and Billikens will play at 3 p.m. in the Gateway City.
Players Mentioned
