Southern Illinois University
Eastern Illinois
Salukis defeat Eastern Illinois 7-0
02/21/2016 | 12:00:00 | Men's Tennis
Tony McDaniel
SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill.—Southern Illinois (5-1) picked up its second win in two days on Sunday in a shutout victory over Eastern Illinois (2-5).
From start to finish, Southern dominated the match. As a team, the Salukis only lost three sets to the Panthers on their way to the 7-0 victory. It was the second time in a row that Eastern Illinois failed to score a point against their opponent.
"Eastern gave us all we wanted, but we were able to get the win," head coach Dann Nelson said. "Even when we got down a set in singles our guys held their composure and believed in their abilities."
SIU quickly swept Eastern Illinois in doubles play to take an early 1-0 lead. The regionally ranked duo of Alex Pozo and Wilder Pimentel defeated Ryan Henderson and Ognjen Jevtic 6-0 to improve to 4-2 in doubles matches this spring.
In singles, SIU's Piotr Baranski overcame a 5-2 deficit in the first set of his match at No. 3 singles against Rui Silva to win 7-5, 6-1. Baranski is 4-0 in all his matches as a Saluki. Pimentel continued his winning ways at No. 2 singles with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 win over Henderson. With the win, Pimentel improved to 5-1 in singles matches. Jonny Rigby clinched the victory for the Salukis with a hard fought win at No. 1 singles. Rigby downed Robert Skolik 5-7, 7-6 (3), 6-4 to remain perfect on the weekend. Rigby's two wins against the Panthers moved him past Fabiano Ramos on the SIU's all-time combined wins list. Rigby leap frogged Ramos with his 126th career victory.
"Our doubles play was much improved from our match against UIC," Nelson said. "I am proud of the way the guys weathered the storm in singles."
With the win, Southern Illinois improved to 5-1 on the season and has tallied five wins in a row. This is SIU's best start to the dual match season since 2011 when SIU also began the season 5-1. Southern has not lost a match in over a month. SIU last lost on Jan. 16 against Tennessee.
"It was a good weekend for us, and we are looking forward to being at home next week against Austin Peay and McKendree," Nelson said.
Final Results
Doubles
Rigby/Baranski def. Skolik/Silva 6-4
Pimentel/Pozo def. Henderson/Jevtic 6-0
Molloy/Martinez def. G. Reiman/T. Reiman
Singles
Rigby def. Skolik 5-7, 7-6 (3), 6-4
Baranski def. Silva 7-5, 6-1
Molloy def. G. Reiman 6-2, 1-6, 11-9
Pozo def. Jevtic 6-2, 6-3
Martinez def. Woodson 6-2, 6-4
