Contact: Drew Sauer, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324
Wartburg Box Score
MSOE Box Score
PLAINFIELD, Ill. (Feb. 1, 2020) – The North Central College men's tennis team opened the 2020 season on a high note on Saturday, sweeping a pair of non-conference matches over each of Wartburg College and Milwaukee School of Engineering inside Five Star Tennis.
In the opener against Wartburg (0-3), the Cardinals (2-0) began the afternoon with a 3-0 sweep of doubles play, as
Guillermo Gonzalez Fernandez and
Javier Suarez Balsera opened the scoring with a 8-1 win over Ben Mason and Jared Hefel at the No. 2 position.
Following at No. 3,
Lucas Pindak and
Justin Howes teamed up to defeat Zach Heyerhoff and Jack Veber, 8-4, before
Colten Way and
Andy Hinch completed the sweep with a 8-6 victory over Lucas Huffman and Nate Kolz at the No. 1 spot.
Carrying that momentum into singles play, Hinch was first to finish at No. 4, scoring a 6-0, 6-2 win over Hefel, before Gonzalez Fernandez clinched the match win for North Central with a 6-1, 6-3 defeat of Huffman at the No. 1 position.
At No. 3, Way cruised to a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Mason, before Suarez Balsera won in straight 6-2 sets over Kolz at No. 2. Continuing to pour it on,
Jeremiah Joyce rolled to a 6-1, 6-3 win at No. 6 over Veber, while
Steven Mears finished out the scoring with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Heyerhoff at the No. 5 spot.
The Cardinals turned in an equally as dominant performance in the nightcap against MSOE (1-1), again jumping out to a 3-0 lead after doubles play, starting with a lopsided 8-1 win for Howes and Pindak over Joshua Fay and Peter Gudopp at the No. 3 position.
Gonzalez Fernandez and Suarez Balsera finished shortly after at No. 2, taking down Alec Dam and Ryan Emerich, 8-2, ahead of Way and Hinch who completed doubles play with a 8-3 victory over Luke Nelson and David Chon at the No. 1 spot.
Needing just a pair of wins in singles play to clinch the match, Joyce was the first to finish at the No. 6 spot, making quick work of Benjamin Steves, 6-3, 6-0, before Mears secured the match win for North Central with a 6-0, 6-1 drubbing of Fay at No. 5.
Hinch then followed up with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Jonas Vorkauf at No. 4, while Way closed out a 6-2, 6-1 win over Dam at No. 3. With just two matches remaining, Suarez Balsera increased the match score 8-0 with a straight-set win over Chon at No. 2, while Gonzalez Fernandez ensured the second sweep of the day, clawing out a 7-6 first-set victory before a 6-2 second set final.
North Central returns to the court on Saturday, Feb. 8, taking on Luther College (Iowa) in a neutral site match contested at Life Sport Athletic Club in Kenosha, Wisconsin with matches slated for 5 p.m.
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