ELON, NC – There is no denying the impact senior Esteban Lopez and graduate Vasil Ivanov have had in the resurgence of North Carolina A&T men's tennis. But the responsibility of moving the program looks like it belongs to sophomore Eder Blanco.
The Aggies lost for only the second time this season as one of the top teams in the Colonial Athletic Association, the Elon Phoenix, defeated the Aggies 6-1 Friday evening at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center. Even though the final score does not say it, the Aggies held their own against the Phoenix, especially Blanco, who secured A&T's only win, a straight 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) win over Nicholas Campbell at No. 2 singles.
Blanco is now tied for the lead in singles wins, winning his eighth straight singles match to improve to 14-2 on the season. Blanco already has 28 career wins, as he matched his win total from a year ago when he was named A&T's top male freshman.
What spurred him on Friday was a loss at No. 2 doubles because the Aggies had a chance to claim the doubles point. Lopez and Ivanov started the Aggies on a positive note with a 6-3 No. 1 doubles win over Oskar Antinheimo and Veljko Krstic. Elon evened the fight for the doubles point when its No. 3 team of Daniel Martin and Luke Queiroz beat Mathieu Dussaubat and Ian Pedersen 7-5.
Therefore, the point came down to the No.2 doubles match between Blanco and Alex Martinez and Elon's Nicholas Condos and Ben Zipay. The Aggies had match point, leading 5-3 with Blanco serving. But the Phoenix broke A&T's serve and went on to win 7-6, 7-5 in the tiebreaker. The come-from-behind win gave Elon a 1-0 lead.
"I felt awful for my teammates, so as soon as we went into the singles, I wanted to destroy the opponent," said Blanco. "It was a really good win in general, with a lot on my mind having to make it up for the guys."
Unfortunately, the Phoenix had already secured the win before Blanco's triumph at No. 2. But the Aggies made it interesting throughout singles play. Lopez lost to Martin at No. 1 doubles 6-2, 6-1 to give the Phoenix a 2-0 lead.
Zipay defeated Dussaubat 6-1, 6-3 at No. 6 singles to give Elon a commanding 3-0 lead. The match was won after Antinheimo defeated A&T's Ethan Baly 6-1, 6-3. After Elon clinched, Ivanov saw his amazing 12-match singles winning streak end with a 6-4, 6-3 loss to Krstic at No. 3 singles. Ivanov dropped to 46-27 for his career and still has 22 out of his last 24 matches.
Blanco got the Aggies on the board at No. 2 before Martinez's lost a tough three-setter to Condos, 3-6, 6-3, 11-9. The Aggies close the regular season at Norfolk State on Tuesday, April 25 at 1 p.m., before heading to Williamsburg, Va., to play in start play in the CAA Men's Championship Tournament at William & Mary's Mackesy Tennis Center on Friday, April 27.
