Men’s Tennis

Sacramento State sent Saint Mary’s packing after a dominant singles slate to clinch another victory at home on Monday.

Freshman Gur Libal and sophomore Henry Lamchinniah took the lone doubles match for Sac State. Saint Mary’s won 6-3 in the second and third doubles to tally up the first point of the series.

Lamchinniah took his singles matchup in three sets. He maintained his lead with hits grazing the net, keeping the Gaels’ responses limited.

Lamchinniah continued to place the ball in uncomfortable spots for senior Carlos Ramos Membrives to return. The net grew familiar with the ball when it left Membrives’ racket and gave an advantage to Lamchinniah leading to the 2-1 singles triumph.

Lamchinniah said Membrives was a tough matchup and a competitive victory.

“He played some really good tennis, took the game on, especially with his forehand, and really took it to me,” Lamchinniah said. “To his credit, he won eight games in a row off his racket. So a really tough match that went a long way into the third, but we’re just super thrilled.”

The Hornets are a young squad with six of eight roster spots being filled by freshmen. Moving into the singles slate, the young core proved why they belong.

Freshmen David Dai, Nick Bowles, Martin Duris and Libal tallied four singles wins for Sac State.

On his nineteenth birthday, Dai celebrated a singles sweep against freshman Francisco Duran (6-4, 6-1). Dai only gave up five games in both of his sets. This was the freshman’s second singles match at the collegiate level, also sweeping against Jessup on Feb. 11.

The Gaels remained a vocal unit throughout the contest, exclaiming celebrations and support from the sidelines. In the middle of the singles slate, a referee issued a warning to two Saint Mary’s players as they stood up yelling in support of their teammate.

Bowles snatched a point for the Hornets, closing out the series with consistent power to his forehand and backhand strokes, silencing some of Gaels’ noise.

Bowles said he wanted to apply pressure early in the game, digging a hole the Gaels couldn’t climb out of.

“I tried to attack with my game. I tried to take the ball early, and it worked well,” Bowles said. “Overall, I’m really happy.”

Libal’s match at the second singles started off tight.

The first set went into deuce where Libal secured two straight to take it 7-5. He picked up the pace in the second set, responding with swift hits the Gaels couldn’t keep up with to win 6-2.

The freshman said that coming into a match stress-free is essential, and that confidence comes from practicing well.

“We know what to do. I think that when you stress, it’s because you don’t do something or you’re not ready for something,” Libal said. “We are ready.”

Duris endured a grueling series, rounding out the singles slate and the match as a whole. Unlike his fellow freshman, Duris went to three sets against junior Pierre Lieutaud.

Lieutaud couldn’t keep his hits in bounds consistently, and Duris capitalized using power hits in rallies to take the set 6-4. The freshman struggled to find a solid serving routine, leading to the Gaels taking the second set.

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Deadlocked at 1-1, it came down to the final set.

Sitting at deuce, Duris tweaked the power of his hits and improved his serve, taking the set 7-5 and resulting in a 2-1 triumph as his whole team watched in support from the court over.

After the freshman’s success, the Hornets rushed the court, embracing their victorious teammate.

“We are surrounded by good guys, everybody has a good friendship,” Libal said. “If you are down, they help you. If they are down, you help them.”

Men’s tennis advances to 4-4 on the season and plays Weber State in Utah this Friday at 10:30 a.m.

Women’s Tennis

Sac State continued their historic start to the season after a visit to Santa Clara on Saturday.

The Hornets dominated in a 7-0 triumph, extending the Division I record to seven straight wins and earning a national ranking at No. 60, via the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.

The Hornets took doubles in Saturday’s matchup, winning at first and second. Junior Palina Saulevich and senior Weronika Ejsmont only dropped two games, outlasting Santa Clara 6-0.

The win at Santa Clara rounds out their extensive away slate of five games, picking up their second sweep of the season in the process.

Senior Maddy Ferreros and sophomore Irene Riva shared similar results, taking second doubles 6-3 and putting them up 1-0 in the match.

The Hornets made quick work of the Broncos, steamrolling in singles. The Hornets didn’t drop a singles match, going 6-0.

Closing out their undefeated road dominance, the majority of the games played were sweeps, with only two being sent to three sets.

The Hornets will be returning home for the first time since Jan. 26, where they will face Cal Poly on Friday at 11 a.m.