SAN DIEGO – San Diego State men’s tennis clinched a second place finish in the Mountain West on Sunday following a 4-0 shutout victory over New Mexico at the Aztec Tennis Center. It is the team’s highest finish in the conference since the 2019 campaign.
The Aztecs finish the regular season with an 11-11 overall record and 5-2 in the league. The Lobos fall to 8-15 on the season and 2-5 in conference play.
San Diego State came out strong, taking courts two and three in doubles competition to secure the first point of the match. Brock Anderson and Lars Johann first took down Philip Bosin and Connor Dils 6-3 on court three before Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice and Imran Daniel Hazli finished the job with a 6-3 victory over Dario Ciobotary and Jan Skerbatis in the second spot. Aleksi Lofman and William Kleege were behind 5-3 against Jakub Prachar and Alberto Perez when the point was earned.
The Aztecs won five of six first sets in singles competition, cruising to two set victories on courts one, two and six to complete the sweep over the Lobos. Lofman earned the second point of the day, defeating Ciobotaru 6-2, 7-5 on the top court. Anderson then extended the lead, taking court six 6-2, 6-3 over Tyler Waddock. Hazli was the clincher for San Diego State, earning a 6-1, 6-2 win in the second spot against Bosin.
When the match was called, Gonzalez Fitzmaurice led Perez 6-4, 1-6, 3-0 on court three while Finn Willman was down 5-7, 5-1 to Prachar on court four and Johann was at a 1-6, 6-4, 3-2 disadvantage against Skerbatis on the fifth court.
With Sunday’s win, the Aztecs secured the No. 2 seed at this week’s Mountain West Championships. They will take on No. 7 Air Force at 1 p.m. on Wednesday in Las Vegas, Nev.
“I’m proud of the guys for earning the two seed,” said Head Coach Gene Carswell. “But we’re excited to go over to Las Vegas and play better than our seeding. That’s been the goal the whole year. I think the stars are starting to align for us, both from how we’re playing and how we’re getting healthy as a group. I’m excited about this upcoming opportunity. It was a special day to celebrate our two seniors. They’ve been a huge part of our success this season. I’ll just say it’s not over for them. We hope to be celebrating a few more special moments very soon here.”
Doubles
- Jakub Prachar/Alberto Perez (UNM) vs. William KIeege/Aleksi Lofman (SDSU) DNF 5-3
- Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice/Imran Daniel Hazli (SDSU) def. Dario Ciobotaru/Jan Skerbatis (UNM) 6-3
- Brock Anderson/Lars Johann (SDSU) def. Philip Bosin/Connor Dils (UNM) 6-3
Singles
- Aleksi Lofman (SDSU) vs. Dario Ciobotaru (UNM) 6-2, 7-5
- Imran Daniel Hazli (SDSU) def. Philip Bosin (UNM) 6-1, 6-2
- Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice (SDSU) vs. Alberto Perez DNF 6-4, 1-6, 3-0
4. Jakub Prachar (UNM) vs. Finn Willman (SDSU) DNF 7-5, 1-5 - Jan Skerbatis (UNM) vs. Lars Johann (SDSU) DNF 1-6, 6-4, 3-2
- Brock Anderson (SDSU) def. Tyler Waddock (UNM) 6-2, 6-3
Order of finish: Doubles: (3,2) Singles: (1,6,2)