FORT WAYNE, Ind. – During the regular season, the IUPUI men’s tennis team dropped a pair of close singles matches to Western Illinois at home which proved to be the difference in a 5-2 defeat to the Leathernecks. The Jaguars got their chance to avenge their regular-season loss to WIU in the semifinals of the 2011 Summit League Tennis Tournament and did so with a 4-2 win over Western Illinois Friday evening at Pine Ridge Racquet Club.

 

“Our guys came out confident with a winning attitude and even though I don’t think we played our best tennis, we came through in clutch situations and played with a lot of heart and passion,” said head coach Brandon Currie. “Now we move on to the toughest part of tournament and look forward to a tough match against UMKC in the finals tomorrow.”

 

The Kangaroos advanced to the finals and will play the Jaguars in the championship at 10 a.m. on Saturday thanks to a 4-0 win over Oral Roberts in the opening match of the day.

 

Similar to its regular-season match, the Jags were able to rally by winning its No. 2 and No. 3 doubles matches to take the doubles point and capture the early momentum.

 

Courtesy of strong play from the No. 2 singles position, IUPUI grew its lead to 2-0 as Nick Volz emerged victorious in a 6-2, 6-3 decision over Mandela Shepard.

 

The Leathernecks got on the board with a win at No. 3 singles, but in his first Summit League Tournament singles match, Chase Emerson came through with an impressive 6-4, 6-2 win at No. 6 singles to move the Jaguars advantage to 3-1.

 

After dropping the first set, Joel Modesitt looked to extend his match to a third and final set, but a furious rally from Alejandro Buceta resulted in Modesitt falling in straight sets, moving the score to 3-2 and shifting the attention to the No. 1 singles match between Ivan Mojsejev and Jeff Cote.

 

Tied at one set apiece, Mojsejev began to battle cramps in the early portion of the third set despite holding on to a 3-2 lead. With the score at deuce in the sixth game, a return from Cote was called out and in response to the call, he hit a ball into the net resulting in a one-point penalty pushing Mojsejev to the break and a 4-2 lead. After both players won their serving games, Mojsejev broke Cote for the second time in the set to win the third and final set, 6-3, giving IUPUI the 4-2 win.

 

With the win, IUPUI moves on to the Summit League Championships on Saturday, April 23, to take on the top-seeded UMKC Kangaroos. IUPUI will be making its third appearance in the championship match and its first since 2004.