DETROIT (1/31/13) – The University of Detroit Mercy men's tennis team will host a pair of Division II opponents as Grand Valley State (2/1) and Wayne State (2/2) will match-up with the Titans at the Franklin Athletic Club in Southfield this weekend. The Grand Valley State contest will be Friday at 7:00 p.m. while UDM will face Wayne State Saturday at 6:00 p.m.
UDM is looking for its first dual match win after falling to Xavier and Ball State last weekend (1/25-26). The Titans are led by freshman
Rafael Orantes with two singles wins, coming against TCU (1/19) and Toledo (1/20).
Chris Cheung and
Alex Latosinsky have also both earned a win in singles action.
In doubles play, Detroit swept Toledo with
Mike Basha and Latosinsky grabbing a win at first doubles and Cheung and
Cesar Escobar Serrano earning a win at third doubles.
The Lakers (0-0) are ranked seventh in the Midwest Region by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). They are led by juniors Andrew Darrell and Bryan Hodges. Darrell is currently ranked No. 19 in singles in the region by the ITA after he went 2-3 in tournaments in the fall. Hodges leads the team with three wins in the fall season.
UDM is 0-2 in the history of the matchup with Grand Valley taking the last contest, 8-1, in 1981.
Wayne State (0-0) is led by Thomas Ducret and Mohamed Fazyl. At the ITA Tournament in the fall, Ducret was seeded ninth in the “A” bracket in singles play and advanced to the round of 16 before falling in three sets. Fazyl played in the “B” flight and advanced to the final four before the play was stopped.
WSU and Detroit met in an exhibition match in the fall back on Oct. 12 with the Titans taking the match, 4-2. Latosinsky,
Pablo Nunez and Basha all took their singles matches. The pairs of Nunez and Joshi and Serrano and Cheung both won their doubles matches at second and third doubles, respectively.
The Titans are 13-7 in dual match action against the Warriors with their last victory, 6-1, coming on Feb. 2, one year ago.
Detroit will take time off from competitive action before the Titans host Dayton on Sunday, Feb. 24 at 7:00 p.m. at the Franklin Athletic Club.
