ABILENE – The Wildcat identity that had Abilene Christian in the WAC finals the last two seasons showed up in time on Wednesday to give ACU a 4-3 win over New Mexico State after trailing 3-1.
ACU lost the doubles point despite a No. 2 win by
Mihaly Deli and
Merse Deli.
Dennis Dutine tied the match at 1-1 with his 6-3, 6-3 win on Court 5 but NMSU won on courts 2 and 4 to take a 3-1 lead.
Martin Delnido kept hope alive with a 6-3, 6-7 (7-5) win at No. 6, leaving things in the hands of ACU veterans
Daniel Morozov and
Cesar Barranquero. Delnido was behind in the second-set tiebreaker 5-3 before scoring four unanswered points.
The Wildcats who were done for the day became a raucous cheering section on both sides of the remaining courts.
Nunez pointed out that the enthusiasm from players off the court and the determination of the remaining three players arose from the team itself and he was pleased to see that aspect of ACU tennis return.
"The way we competed against Lamar on some courts and the way we competed against Omaha on some courts, I wasn't very confident when we were down 3-1," Nunez said. "But like I told the guys at the end if we just go back to where we were last year and at the beginning of this season – where you can look down every court and see every guy engaged, competing and fighting – they're the ones who are going to keep that standard high."
Morozov dropped the first set at No. 1 singles before rallying for a win, 7-5, 6-3. Barranquero also lost the first set at No. 3 singles in a tiebreaker but rallied to take the second set, 6-3. He found himself down 5-4 in the final set but broke serve twice and snagged the victory to the delight of his teammates.
"Martin is just getting more and more comfortable in being in tough situations and not letting the ups and downs of a match affect him that much," Nunez said. "He just keeps coming back at you.
"And just to see Dani go back to his identity and having that presence on the court when he decides there's not going be a single ball that's getting by me; he can really just make a match as physical as possible.
"And then, of course, Cesar, who's battling illnesses and this and that, and the dude just keeps coming. He's obviously not a hundred percent physically and he's not going to be. He's embracing the fact that he may not look the same as he did his freshman and sophomore years, but he's still going to find a way to do it."
While Nuinez may try to find an additional match to fill a 17-day void, the next task on the schedule is the Western Athletic Conference slate. ACU begins WAC action in Seattle on March 30.
Abilene Christian 4, New Mexico State 3
Singles competition
1.
Daniel Morozov (ACU) def. Itay Feigin (NMSU) 3-6, 7-5, 6-3
2. Tobias Wallin (NMSU) def.
Mihaly Deli (ACU) 6-2, 6-4
3.
Cesar Barranquero (ACU) def. Gustavo Campos (NMSU) 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 7-5
4. Roko Stipetic (NMSU) def.
Merse Deli (ACU) 7-5, 6-1
5.
Dennis Dutine (ACU) def. Luca Fe D'Ostiani (NMSU) 6-3, 6-3
6.
Martin Delnido (ACU) def. Ricardo Mercado (NMSU) 6-3, 7-6 (7-5)
Doubles competition
1. Tobias Wallin/Gustavo Campos (NMSU) def.
Benjamin McDonald/
Ethan Scribner (ACU) 7-5
2.
Mihaly Deli/
Merse Deli (ACU) def. Roko Stipetic/Luca Fe D'Ostiani (NMSU) 6-4
3. Itay Feigin/Ricardo Mercado (NMSU) def.
Daniel Morozov/
Dennis Dutine (ACU) 6-2
