SAN DIEGO — Freshman Kuba Hrynkiewicz clinched a dramatic 4-3 victory over San Diego State on Sunday with a third-set tiebreaker triumph, capping a perfect opening weekend for LMU's men's tennis team.
The Lions improved to 2-0 after defeating UC San Diego 5-2 on Saturday and edging the Aztecs in a thriller the next day, showing resilience and depth across the lineup in both matches.
Saturday's season opener at UC San Diego's Northview Tennis Courts saw LMU roll to a 5-2 victory. The Lions secured the doubles point behind a 6-2 win from Cesar Cruz and freshman
Emil Kindhult at No. 1 and a 6-4 triumph from
Cyrus Ahmad and
Darius Tamaddon at No. 3.
Cruz set the tone in singles play, dispatching Oliver Worth 6-3, 6-2 at No. 1. Max Wuelfing showed strong form with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Prathinav Chunduru at No. 2, while Ahmad won a tight two-setter over Abhinav Chunduru 6-4, 7-6 (9-7) at No. 4.
Alex Padro Parra clinched the match with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Andrew Beceiro at No. 5.
The Tritons' only singles wins came from Zach Pellouchoud, who rallied past Kindhult 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 at No. 3, and Yaron Guberman, who defeated Hrynkiewicz 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 at No. 6.
Sunday's match at the Aztec Tennis Center proved far more dramatic.
LMU built early momentum by capturing the doubles point.
Cruz and Kindhult dominated at No. 1, defeating William Kieege and Denis Maijorov 6-2, before Wuelfing and Padro Parra clinched the point with a 7-6 (7-4) win over Lars Johann and Imran Daniel Hazli at No. 2 doubles in a tightly contested tiebreak.
The singles competition proved much tighter.
Wuelfing gave the Lions their first singles point with a commanding 6-1, 6-4 victory over Aleksi Lofman at No. 2, and Ahmad added another with a steady 6-4, 6-4 win over Eugenio Gonzalez Fitzmaurice at No. 4.
San Diego State battled back with wins from Imran Daniel Hazli at No. 1, where Cruz retired after dropping a first-set tiebreaker, and Brock Anderson, who defeated Padro Parra 6-2, 6-0 at No. 5.
With LMU leading 3-2, Hrynkiewicz stepped up to clinch the match. The freshman outlasted Maijorov 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (10-8) at No. 6 singles, holding on three separate match points to secure the team victory.
Lars Johann's 6-7, 6-4, 6-2 comeback win over Kindhult at No. 3 came after the match had already been decided.
The 2-0 start marks a promising beginning for the Lions, who showed both dominance and resilience across the weekend. Wuelfing was particularly impressive, winning all four of his completed matches without dropping a set in singles play. The doubles teams of Cruz-Kindhult and Wuelfing-Padro Parra both went 2-0 to secure the doubles point in each match.
LMU will look to continue its perfect start when the team returns home next week to face Grand Canyon on Friday afternoon.
