YOUNGSTOWN STATE BOX SCORES (HTML / PDF)

BOSTON BOX SCORES (HTML / PDF)

ORLANDO, Fla. - The Western Illinois men's tennis team dropped a pair of matches on their spring break trip on Tuesday (March 15), falling to Youngstown State and Boston University by 5-2 scores. Western Illinois (3-9) finished the trip with a 1-2 record as the Fighting Leathernecks defeated Quinnipiac, 4-3, on Monday (March 14).

Seniors Jeff Cote (No. 1) and Alejandro Buceta (No. 4) picked up singles victories against Boston and also paired up to defeat Youngstown State's Tariq and Zeeshan Ismail, 8-5, at No. 2 doubles. The Leathernecks captured the doubles point against Youngstown State as senior Francisco Ortiz and sophomore Patrick Hammers defeated the team of Felipa Rosa/Rodrigo Campos at the No. 1 position by an 8-5 score.

"We got off to a great start against Youngstown State by winning the doubles point very convincingly," said Western Illinois head coach Chris Kane. "I was pleased that we could play some tough competition on our Florida trip and also get some practice on the side in beautiful weather. The Quinnipiac win (March 14) was good for us as they were a conference champion and an NCAA Championship-qualifier last year."  

Western first played Youngstown State in the morning and the Penguins won five singles matches on their way to a 5-2 victory. Junior Jim Capalbo picked up a default win at the No. 6 position and the No. 3 doubles team of freshman Ben Yue and junior Mandela Shepard also won by default.

In the afternoon against Boston, Cote got the Leathernecks off on the right foot as the Warwick, R.I. native defeated Josh Friedman 4-6, 7-5, 10-6 at No. 1 singles. It was Cote's third win of the season at the No. 1 position.

"Jeff has been competitive and close in every match he has played this year," Kane added. "There are no vacation days at No. 1 singles as every opponent is highly-skilled. I was glad to see Jeff capture a win against Josh Friedman, who is one of the better sophomores in the country. It was nice to see Jeff pull out a third set tiebreaker against a high-quality opponent."

Buceta, playing at No. 4 singles, also picked up his third win of the season with a 6-2, 6-2 decision over Bill Kring. Buceta is 1-1 at the No. 4 position so far this season.

In doubles play, Hammers and Yue improved to 2-0 at the No. 3 position with a convincing 8-2 victory over Alex Hallenbeck and Marcus van Berckel. Hammers owns a team-high seven doubles victories this season while Yue has four wins with three different teammates at the No. 3 slot. 

"There were a number of bright spots in the Boston match," Kane said. "Our No. 3 doubles team of Patrick Hammers and Ben Yue continues to play aggressive with excellent results. They got off to a 5-0 lead and never looked back."

The Fighting Leathernecks return to action in Normal, Ill. on Saturday (March 19) against in-state rival Illinois State. The match is set to begin at 2:30 p.m. CT.

Youngstown State 5, Western Illinois 2
March 15, 2011 at Orlando, Fla. 

Singles competition
1. Tariq Ismail (YSU) def. Jeff Cote (WIUM) 7-5, 6-2
2. Felipe Rosa (YSU) def. Patrick Hammers (WIUM) 6-4, 6-2
3. Max Schmerin (YSU) def. Mandela Shepard (WIUM) 6-3, 6-2
4. Zeeshan Ismail (YSU) def. Alejandro Buceta (WIUM) 7-6, 6-4
5. Rodrigo Campos (YSU) def. Francisco Ortiz (WIUM) 6-1, 6-0
6. Jim Capalbo (WIUM) def. No player (YSU), by default 

Doubles competition
1. Patrick Hammers/Francisco Ortiz (WIUM) def. Felipe Rosa/Rodrigo Campos (YSU) 8-5
2. Jeff Cote/Alejandro Buceta (WIUM) def. Tariq Ismail/Zeeshan Ismail (YSU) 8-5
3. No player/No player (YSU) vs. Mandela Shepard/Ben Yue (WIUM) no result

Boston University 5, Western Illinois 2
March 15, 2011 at Orlando, Fla. 

Singles competition
1. Jeff Cote (WIUM) def. Josh Friedman (BU) 4-6, 7-5, 10-6
2. Michael Kopelman (BU) def. Mandela Shepard (WIUM) 6-1, 6-4
3. Jesse Frieder (BU) def. Patrick Hammers (WIUM) 6-1, 6-2
4. Alejandro Buceta (WIUM) def. Bill Kring (BU) 6-2, 6-2
5. Ferdinand Brunet (BU) def. Francisco Ortiz (WIUM) 6-3, 6-2
6. Regis Chang (BU) def. Jim Capalbo (WIUM) 6-3, 6-1 

Doubles competition
1. Josh Friedman/Michael Kopelman (BU) def. Mandela Shepard/Francisco Ortiz (WIUM) 8-6
2. Jesse Frieder/Pendleton (BU) def. Jeff Cote/Alejandro Buceta (WIUM) 8-6
3. Patrick Hammers/Ben Yue (WIUM) def. Alex Hallenback/Marcus van Brekel (BU) 8-2