DES MOINES, Iowa – Senior Matt Frost (Cambridge, England) came up with a pair comeback wins securing victories over Georgia State, 4-1, and UW-Green Bay, 4-3, for the 29th-ranked Drake University men's tennis team on Friday at the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.
Georgia State won the No. 2 doubles match, but the Bulldogs rallied to take the double point with wins from freshmen Bayo Philips (Houston, Texas) and Ben Stride (Bognor Regis, England) at No. 3, 6-1, and seniors Alen Salibasic (Tuzla, Bosnia & Herzegovina) and Ben Mullis (Leicestershire, England) at No. 1, 6-3.
The Panthers tied it up at one by earning the first singles point at No. 4. Stride put Drake back on top with an intense 7-5, 6-3 victory at No. 5. Salibasic, who is ranked 39th in the nation, earned a straight set, 6-2, 7-5, win at No. 1, giving Drake a 3-1 lead. Frost registered the match clinching point for the Bulldogs with a come from behind, 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3 win at No. 2.
The Bulldogs gutted out another tough doubles point as they received wins from Salibasic and Mullis at No. 1 and Philips and Stride again at No. 3.
Salibasic cruised past Green Bay's Michael Tenzer, 6-3, 6-2, giving Drake a 2-0 lead. The Phoenix got on the board with a three-set win at No. 4, but Mullis came up with a three-set win of his own at No. 6, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, pushing the Bulldogs' lead to 3-1. GB made it a one-point match, 3-2, with a win at No. 5 and with Nos. 2 and 3 in their third set to decide the match. After dropping the first set 7-5, Frost once again bounced back to win the last two sets, 7-5, 6-3 and secured the match for the Bulldogs.
Before the singles matches against Green Bay, the Bulldogs honored their four seniors; Ravi Patel (London, England), Frost, Mullis and Salibasic.
“We have another great group of seniors to come through this program, and we are going to be awfully sad having these guys leave our team. They will always be a part of this program. They have really helped take this Drake program to another level,” said Drake head coach Davidson Kozlowski. “All of these guys have been a part of the biggest wins and the highest rankings in school history. This school, the coaches and their teammates owe so much to them for all of their hard work and dedication that they have put into this great program.”
The Bulldogs begin the final month of the regular season with a trip to No. 48 Wichita State on Friday, April 3 at 6 p.m.
#29 Drake 4, Georgia State 1
March 27, 2015 at Des Moines, Iowa (Roger Knapp Tennis Center)
Singles
1. #39 Salibasic, Alen (DU) def. Koeke,Jannis (GSU) 6-2, 7-5
2. Frost, Matt (DU) def. Kennedy,Zack (GSU) 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3
3. Patel, Ravi (DU) vs. Acuna,Sebastian (GSU) 1-6, 7-5, 4-1, unfinished
4. Chevallier,Sofiane (GSU) def. Mullis, Ben (DU) 6-2, 6-1
5. Stride, Ben (DU) def. Andrukhou, Andrei (GSU) 7-5, 6-3
6. Philips, Bayo (DU) vs. Jaworski,Felipe (GSU) 7-5, 2-6, 4-3, unfinished
Doubles
1. Salibasic, Alen/Mullis, Ben (DU) def. Kennedy,Zack/Chevallier,Sofiane (GSU) 6-3
2. Acuna,Sebastian/Andrukhou, Andrei (GSU) def. Frost, Matt/Patel, Ravi (DU) 6-1
3. Philips, Bayo/Stride, Ben (DU) def. Koeke,Jannis/Jaworski,Felipe (GSU) 6-1
Match Notes
Drake 19-6; National ranking #29
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (4,5,1,2)
#29 Drake 4, Green Bay 3
Mar 27, 2015 at Des Moines, Iowa (Roger Knapp Tennis Center)
Singles
1. #39 Salibasic, Alen (DU) def. Tenzer, Michael (GB) 6-3, 6-2
2. Frost, Matt (DU) def. Gomez Isling,Leopold (GB) 5-7, 7-5, 6-3
3. Scott, Howard (GB) def. Patel, Ravi (DU) 6-3, 5-7, 6-4
4. Kraenzler, Florian (GB) def. MacGeoch, Calum (DU) 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2
5. Schramm, Joshua (GB) def. Stride, Ben (DU) 2-6, 7-5, 6-2
6. Mullis, Ben (DU) def. Leto, Joey (GB) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
1. Salibasic, Alen/Mullis, Ben (DU) def. Tenzer, Michael/Kraenzler, Florian (GB) 6-2
2. Scott, Howard/Leto, Joey (GB) def. Frost, Matt/Patel, Ravi (DU) 6-1
3. Philips, Bayo/Stride, Ben (DU) def. Gomez Isling,Leopold/Tebon, Michael (GB) 7-6 (7-3)
Match Notes
Drake 20-6; National ranking #29
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,4,6,5,2,3)
