DES MOINES, Iowa – The Creighton men’s tennis team opened the fall portion of their schedule with seven victories during the first day of the Drake Invite on Friday night inside the Roger Knapp Tennis Center in Des Moines, Iowa.
“Tonight was a very good test for our doubles teams,” said first year head coach Gerhard Posch. “Some pairs shined brighter than others, but overall there was a lot of positives. We will look to learn from today and improve tomorrow.”
Freshman Blake Eason and junior Ethan Neil combined for a trio of wins in group six. The duo opened the event with a 6-2 victory over Luke Fridinger and Ali Derbani, before cruising to a 6-1 win over Ivan Vazquez and Teddy Wong. The pair finished the night by defeating Caleb Peterson and Tadeo Missan, 6-4.
Sophomore’s Kirtan Patel and Yuma Daijima teamed up for a pair of wins in group five for the Bluejays. Patel and Daijima battled Taona Mhwandagara and Dominik Knutson to a 6-4 victory but fell 6-2 to Ethan Terry and Jerall Yasin before defeating Ethan Gaubert and Mikel Garmendia, 7-5, in their third match of the day.
Senior Shin Inoue and sophomore Zachary Kuo captured one win in group three, while senior Matthew Lanahan and junior Alejandro Gandini claimed a 6-4 win over Mikhail Korkunov and Bryan Kuntz in group one.
The Bluejays continue play in Des Moines on Saturday morning with singles play.
Group 1
Oliver Johansson/Matija Matic def. Alejandro Gandini/Matthew Lanahan, 6-4
Gandini/Lanahan def. Mikhail Korkunov/Bryan Kuntz, 6-4
Gage Gohl/Tyler Haddorff def. Gandini/Lanahan, 6-3
Group 3
Markus Bolin/Olle Sonesson Lidholt def. Shin Inoue/Zachary Kuo, 6-3
Ryoma Mishiro/Quintan Van Wijk def. Inoue/Kuo, 6-3
Inoue/Kuo def. Marco Siviero/Josh Christensen, 7-6 (7-5)
Group 5
Kirtan Patel/Yuma Daijima def. Taona Mhwandagara/Dominik Knutson, 6-4
Ethan Terry/Jerall Yasin def. Patel/Daijima, 6-2
Patel/Daijima def. Ethan Gaubert/Mikel Garmendia, 7-5
Group 6
Blake Eason/Ethan Neil def. Luke Fridinger/Ali Derbani, 6-2
Eason/Neil def. Ivan Vazquez/Teddy Wong, 6-1
Eason/Neil def. Caleb Peterson/Tadeo Missan, 6-4
