LINCOLN, Neb. – Concordia entered GPAC play on Tuesday (Mar. 5) taking on Mount Marty as its first conference challenger. Hugo Fuentes and Santi Abadia continue to show growth, who sealed victories in singles, but the Dawgs couldn’t muster any more wins in the 2-5 loss. The two squads competed at the Woods Tennis Center in Lincoln, Neb. after both teams previously faced Iowa Central Community College.
The Bulldogs drop to 4-7 overall and 0-1 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC). Head Coach Lisa Hart commented on her players growing each dual and their positive attitude.
“We lost a heartbreaker (2-5), but we have made so many strides since we played them in early February. We didn’t win a singles match then and today we won two. Very proud of our progress and how our players have stayed the course and have kept their focus on our preparation, attitude and effort.
Fuentes was scorched in the first set (1-6) and having moved into the No. 1 position for the Bulldogs this season, he could have given up after those seven games. Instead, the Denia, Spain, native showed grit and battled back taking the second set (6-2) and delivering a comeback win (10-7) in the tiebreaker. With this victory, Fuentes scores his first singles triumph of the season.
No. 2 Abadia came out strong against Alexander Makarov, completing a two set win (6-4, 6-3) over the Lancer. He has had strong showings of late, taking two out of his last three in singles play.
Other starters in individual play were Manuel Rodriguez (No. 3), Grady Works (No. 4), Michael Bedrosian (No. 5) and Mitch Krumm (No. 6).
Concordia was shutout by Mount Marty in doubles, as all three pairings fell in the early portions of the dual.
The Lancers and Bulldogs have competed against each other three times this season, with the first two as non-conference bouts. Mount Marty has taken all three duals, with today being the closest finish.
Concordia (4-7) will have a needed 10-day break before facing Central College (2-7) out of Pella, Iowa on Friday (Mar. 15). The two opponents will meet at the Bulldog Tennis Courts at 2 p.m. CT. The NCAA Division III Dutch bested the Bulldogs in last year’s contest, 5-4.