SEWARD, Neb. – It was chilly and breezy on Saturday (March 25) as the Concordia University Men’s Tennis team opened conference play on the home courts. The weather did not rattle the Bulldogs, who snappily sent visiting Hastings packing in a 7-0 decision. Concordia swept through both doubles and singles with the closest calls coming at No. 1 doubles and No. 6 singles. Five Bulldogs emerged with victories in both doubles and singles.
Head Coach Cam Long’s squad (7-5 overall) has rolled through the month of March with a 5-0 record that includes four nonconference wins. This was just a start in Concordia’s aim to exceed last season’s third place GPAC finish.
“It was a good all-around team win,” Long said. “We came in and did exactly what we needed to do to take care of business. We have three more matches over the next week-and-a-half, so this is a great way to begin that stretch.”
It would not have made a difference in the team score, but the duo of Hugo Fuentes and Juan Rabellino managed to squeak out the victory at No. 1 doubles, 7-6 (7-1), to ensure a clean sweep for the afternoon. The action was less competitive at Nos. 2 and 3 doubles where the tandems of Santiago Abadia and Eduardo Rojas and Manuel Rodriguez and Shawn Springer, respectively, came away with 6-2 decisions.
The momentum carried over into singles as the Bulldogs won all but one set. At the No. 6 spot, Luke Johnson shook off a 6-0 defeat in the first set and took the match, 0-6, 6-1, 1-0 (1), keeping a goose egg in the score column for Hastings. At the Nos. 1 through 5 spots, wins were claimed by Fuentes, 6-3, 6-3, Abadia, 6-1, 6-0, Rojas, 6-2, 6-0, Rodriguez, 6-2, 6-0, and Rabellino, 6-0, 6-1. Near the bottom of the lineup, Rodriguez continues to clean up. He now has a seven-match singles win streak and has run his personal record to 9-2 this season.
Hastings (1-7, 0-1 GPAC) has had a tough run through its schedule. Its lone victory was a 4-3 decision over Baker University on Feb. 19. Concordia has won each of the past three series meetings with the rival Broncos.
A makeup match at Baker University is coming up on Tuesday in Baldwin City, Kan. First serve is set for 1 p.m. CT. The two programs last met up in 2021 when the Wildcats took a 4-0 decision.