March 20, 2005
Results
SAN ANTONIO - The Lamar men's tennis team dropped its second straight match on Saturday afternoon, falling to Texas-San Antonio, 5-2, in a Southland Conference contest at the UTSA Tennis Center.
Lamar fell to 8-7 overall and 1-2 in SLC play with the loss, while UTSA improved to 9-2 on the year with a 2-0 league record. The Cardinals return to action on Sunday with a pair of non-conference matches in San Antonio. LU starts with New Mexico State at 9 a.m. before taking on Laredo Junior College in an exhibition match at 2:30 p.m.
Saturday's match began with doubles play, where the Roadrunners scored the first point of the match with wins at the No. 1 and No. 3 spots. LU's nationally-ranked team of Dean Clower and Ignacio Melus lost their second straight match at the top spot, 8-3, to UTSA's Ricardo Almeida and Dennis Andrade. Christian Olivier and David Wanja also lost for the second consecutive time, falling 8-1 to the Roadrunners' third unit.
Lamar's lone doubles win was a gritty 9-7 decision at the No. 2, where seniors Emilio Kirby and Juan Pablo Alatorre picked up their eighth win of the season. The LU tandem outlasted UTSA's Hetori Chaves and Anthony Portois to earn the victory.
In singles play the Roadrunners posted straight set wins at the No. 2, 4, 5 and 6 positions to clinch the victory. Alatorre, a native of Mexico City, Mexico, snapped a three-match skid with a determined effort at the No. 1 slot for Lamar. The three-year letterman fought off Anthony Portois for the win, taking both sets 7-5 and 7-5.
Melus, a senior from Arica, Chile, also used a gutsy effort in the No. 3 position to earn his eighth win of the year. After losing the first set by the lopsided score of 6-1, Melus returned the favor to UTSA's Almeida with a 6-1 win of his own in the second set. In the third set, Melus extended his win streak to three in a row by winning the frame 7-5.
Texas-San Antonio 5, Lamar University 2
Singles competition:
1. Juan Pablo Alatorre (LAMAR) def. Anthony Portois (UTSA) 7-5, 7-5
2. Dennis Andrade (UTSA) def. Emilio Kirby (LAMAR) 6-4, 6-4
3. Ignacio Melus (LAMAR) def. Ricardo Almeida (UTSA) 1-6, 6-1, 7-5
4. Jonas Hoglund (UTSA) def. Emmanuel Olivier (LAMAR) 6-1, 6-1
5. Joe Michael Olfindo (UTSA) def. Dean Clower (LAMAR) 6-4, 7-5
6. Hetori Chaves (UTSA) def. Christian Olivier (LAMAR) 7-6, 6-1
Doubles competition:
1. Ricardo Almeida/Dennis Andrade (UTSA) def. Dean Clower/Ignacio Melus (LAMAR) 8-3
2. Emilio Kirby/Juan Pablo Alatorre (LAMAR) def. Hetori Chaves/Anthony Portois (UTSA) 9-7
3. Jonas Hoglund/Adam Becker (UTSA) def. Christian Olivier/David Wanja (LAMAR) 8-1
