Eighth-ranked Westmont came from behind on Monday afternoon at the Abbott Tennis Courts to claim a 5-4 win over #14 Xavier (La.) in a men’s tennis match.
Westmont surrendered two of three doubles matches, but came back to win four of the six singles matches.
At No. 2 doubles, Westmont’s Bryan Cox and Tim Göranson defeated Steffan Giles-Osborn and Sean Richardson by a score of 8-1. However at No. 3, Tiago Hayashi and Kent Stormans fell by the same score to Amir Rahbar and Jonathan Aubrey. Warriors Carlos Lima and Lukas Zielen battled with Zach Taylor and Hassan Abbas but fell by a score of 8-6 at the No. 1 spot.
The Gold Rush of Xavier, stretched their advantage to 3-1 when Aubrey recorded a 6-2, 6-2 win over Seth Grotelueschen on the number six court. The Warriors began their comeback with a win on the number three court by Göranson over Giles-Osborn. However, Westmont suffered a set back when Cox lost at number two to Abbas 6-4, 7-5. As a result, the Warriors needed to win in all three of the remaining singles matches.
Hayashi took the first step with a 6-3, 7-5 win over Rahbar, making it a 4-3 score. However, both Lima at No.1 and Zielen at No. 5 had lost their first set. Zielen lost 3-6 but came back to win the next two sets 6-4, 6-1.
“I think I wasn’t really focused enough in the first set and I took it a little easy,” acknowledged Zielen. “I was so concerned with my doubles loss, which was really disappointing to me. Then I realized a serious situation. I concentrated on my serve and tried to keep the ball in play. After that I got more touch because of hitting more shots and I could play my game.”
Zielen’s win tied the score at four-all and left it in the hands of Lima and Taylor at number one.
“Coach came to me in the middle of the second set and told me to keep playing because our guys were battling and we still had a chance to win,” said Lima.
Lima and Taylor took the first set to a tiebreaker which Taylor won 7-1. Lima responded with a 6-3 win in the second set and a 6-1 win in the third.
“I think I played more relaxed after I lost the first set,” said Lima. “I played with no pressure and with a flow of energy. It worked well for me. I was more relaxed to make my shots and to serve. I was looser, kept my balance and just played.”
Tomorrow, the Warriors will travel to Azusa to take on the fourth ranked Cougars of Azusa Pacific.
