River Forest, Ill. (9/14/18) – The University of Detroit Mercy men's tennis team picked up where it left off in the spring with a strong showing on day one of the River Forest Collegiate Invite hosted by Northern Illinois.
 
The tournament features eight Midwest programs with Saint Louis, UIC, Valparaiso, Youngstown State, Eastern Illinois, Marquette, Northern Illinois and Detroit Mercy in attendance.
 
As a squad, the Titans went 9-4 on day one – the best start to the River Forest Collegiate Invitational in Detroit Mercy history.
 
Sophomore Luka Soskic, playing from the No. 1 line in singles, picked up a dominating 6-1, 6-1 win over Northern Illinois' Kris Ortega.
 
Newcomer Dino Bonetta picked up a grueling three-set win on the third line over Vasilejos Vardakis of Youngstown State with a 7-6 (7-5) win in the first set, a 3-6 setback in the second and a 10-7 edge in the decisive third frame.
 
Sophomore Gvidas Motuzas picked up an impressive win over Marquette's Eddie Griesidieck in straight sets at No. 4, 6-4 and 6-3.
 
At No. 5 singles, sophomore Alvaro Arce Lopez-Sanchez defeated Luke Purser of YSU, 6-4 and 6-1.
 
Adam Zychowicz added another win for the Titans, with the senior toppling YSU's Luke Purser, 6-1 and 7-5, from the sixth singles line.
 
In doubles, Soskic and Yevhen Sirous picked up a win on the top line over a pair from Marquette, 6-4.
 
Freshman Dino Bonetta and Motuzas teamed up for a pair of wins over Valparaiso and then Marquette, with scores of 7-6 and 6-4, respectively.
 
After dropping their doubles opener to NIU, Lopez-Sanchez and Zychowicz bounced back with a 6-3 win over Warstler and Khalagallah of Marquette.
 
The tournament continues on Saturday and Sunday with the Titans looking to keep the early season momentum going from the Prairie State.
 
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