The UMBC men's tennis team defeated George Mason, 5-2, at the UMBC Tennis Complex on Wednesday afternoon. Mason slipped to 7-10 on the season, while UMBC improved to 5-12 on the campaign.
The Patriots and Retrievers split 6-2 decisions at the No. 2 and 3 doubles positions. Mason's No. 3 team of Daniel Gutierrez and Giuliano Buzoiano defeated the UMBC team of Biyik Akinshermoyin and Kevin Hsieh, while Tanner Baine and Aaron Capitel dropped their match. In the top doubles match, Mason's Joe Hill and James Lange were locked in a tight battle with the Retrievers No. 1 duo of Melker Svard/Eliott Loubatie. But the Retriever pulled out the match, 7-6, to give the hosts a 1-0 lead heading into singles play.
Top singles player Aaron Capitel and Daniel Gutierrez would triumph in their matches to earn Mason's two points. Capitel defeated Justin Carter, 6-4, 6-2. Gutierrez breezed through his match against Hsieh, 6-2, 6-1, improving his singles record to 14-10.
Mason's James Lange won the first set in his match, 6-4, but dropped the next two to fall to the Retrievers Alex Drean at No. 4 singles.
“UMBC is a tough team and we always have great battles with them," said Jimmy Davis Associate Head Coach. "They won a few key points today that really dictated the outcome of the match, but our guys fought for every point and kept the match competitive until the very end. We'll get back to work and keep making improvements this week.”
Up next for the Patriots is a four-match home stand to finish out the regular season. This weekend Mason hosts a pair of conference foes, Davidson on Saturday and St. Joseph's on Sunday at the George Mason Tennis Courts.
Doubles
#1. Melker Svard/Eliott Loubatie (UMBC) def. Hill/Lange (Mason), 7-6
#2. Justin Carter/Alex Drean (UMBC) def. Baine/Capitel (Mason), 6-2
#3. Buzoiano/Gutierrez (Mason) def. Biyik Akinshemoyin/Kevin Hsieh (UMBC), 6-2
Singles
#1. Aaron Capitel (Mason) def. Justin Carter (UMBC), 6-4, 6-2
#2. Svard (UMBC) def. Joe Hill (Mason), 7-6, 7-6
#3. Loubatie (UMBC) def. Tanner Baine (Mason), 6-0, 7-5
#4. Drean (UMBC) def. James Lange (Mason), 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
#5. Daniel Gutierrez (Mason) def. Hsieh (UMBC), 6-2, 6-1
#6. Biyak Akinshemoyin (UMBC) def. Giuliano Buzoiano (Mason), 6-3, 6-2
