LOS ANGELES – The Lamar University men's tennis team (3-1) needed only seven of the nine matches to defeat Boise State Saturday afternoon on the first day of the ITA National Indoor Qualifying tournament. LU defeated the Broncos, 4-2, in Los Angeles, Calif. to move two wins over the .500 mark on the season.
"We came out strong in doubles and accomplished our main goal – holding serve," said LU head coach Scott Shankles. "Michael and Sebastian gave us a huge boost by winning 6-0, which allowed Nik and Jeandre to seal the doubles point.
"In singles, we knew they would come out with a lot of fight but if we could win four first sets then it really played to our advantage. I'm very proud of these guys to get this win. We are ready to battle with UCLA tomorrow for a chance to advance," added Shankles.
The Cardinals had very little trouble picking up the doubles point with victories at Nos. 1 and 2 doubles. The match on court three was stopped after Big Red had secured enough wins for the point. LU was trailing on court three at the time the match was suspended, but it didn't matter due to the Cardinals dominance on the other two courts. The Cardinals won those two matches by a combined score of 12-3.
It was a similar performance by the Cardinals at No. 6 singles. Senior Juuso Laitinen took his opponent out of the match early on. Laitinen recorded a 6-0-, 6-1 decision over BSU's Harvey Shackleton to give the Cardinals a commanding 2-0 lead.
Despite the Cardinals early two-point advantage, the match would tighten. Boise State followed the loss on court six with a straight-sets victory on court No. 2. Right at the moment the Broncos were trying to rally, LU got another clutch performance from its senior class. Jeandre Hoogenboezem recorded a 6-3 decision in the opening set at line three singles over Jack Heslin. Hoogenboezem would put up a similar type performance to take the match with a second-set winner, 6-3.
Hoogenboezem's victory left the Cardinals needing just one more point for the overall victory. Before the Cardinals could celebrate, the Broncos made things a bit more exciting by picking up a point at the No. 5 position.
Trailing 3-2, Boise State would not be allowed to get any closer as sophomore Sebastian Santibanez closed the door on any hope of a come-from-behind victory. Santibanez defeated Pedro Platzeck, 6-1, 6-4 on court four.
The Cardinals will face tournament-host UCLA Sunday in next round. The Bruins cruised past New Mexico, 4-0, Saturday afternoon. The match will begin at 2 p.m. from the Sunset Canyon Tennis Courts.
-LU CARDINALS-
