Michigan
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Western Michigan
Wolverines Net Comeback Win Over Broncos in Opener
1/21/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 48 University of Michigan men's tennis team opened the 2006 dual match season with a thrilling 4-3 triumph over Western Michigan Saturday afternoon (Jan. 21) at the Varsity Tennis Center. The Wolverines (1-0) dropped all three doubles matches before claiming four of six singles matches for the comeback victory.
With U-M trailing 3-2 in the match, sophomore Matko Maravic (Zagreb,Croatia/V.Gimnazija) and freshman Andrew Mazlin (Altamonte Springs, Fla./Lyman HS) claimed three-set singles wins at Nos. 1 and 4, respectively, to give the Wolverines their 10th straight season-opening victory at the Varsity Tennis Center.
All three doubles matches went down to the wire, with the Broncos coming out on the winning end on each court. Western Michigan secured the first team point with a pair of 9-7 victories at Nos. 2 and 3. Tim Bradshaw and Jeff French were even with freshman Peter Aarts (Pound Ridge, N.Y./Fox Lane HS) and junior Steve Peretz (Brooklyn, N.Y./The Dwight School) through 14 games at No. 3, but the WMU pair went on to hold serve and then break U-M's serve to take the match. The same exact scenario took place on the far court, as Alex Birchmeier and Jose Orozco earned the final two games to defeat junior Ryan Heller (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) and Mazlin at No. 2 and give Western Michigan a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Broncos wrapped up a sweep in doubles with a win at No. 1, as Brady Crosby and Bryan Norville outlasted junior Brian Hung (Hong Kong, China/Sagemont Virtual School) and Maravic in a tiebreaker, 9-8(5). It was Hung and Maravic's first loss in four matches.
Peretz got the Wolverines off to a solid start in singles play, handily defeating Norville at No. 5 by a score of 6-3, 6-3. After No. 62-ranked Heller fell to Bradshaw (6-3, 6-4) at No. 3, Hung swung the momentum back in Michigan's favor with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Orozco at No. 2. Ann Arbor native Kevin Hayward pulled the Broncos ahead 3-2 after coming from behind to defeat Aarts at No. 6, 4-6, 6-1, 6-1.
The 58th-ranked Maravic carried his impressive play during the fall over into the dual match opener, handing Crosby a 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-1 defeat at the top singles spot. In the most dramatic match of the afternoon, Mazlin battled back to defeat Birchmeier at No. 4 to clinch the match for Michigan. After falling 7-6(6) in the first set, Mazlin earned a 6-4 decision in the second frame and then pulled out a 6-2 win in the third and deciding set to seal the team victory in his dual match debut.
The Wolverines return to the court tonight to take on Ball State at 6 p.m. The event will cap off today's tripleheader, as the U-M women's team will face DePaul between the two men's matches beginning at 2 p.m.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- #58 Matko Maravic (U-M) d. Brady Crosby, 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-1
No. 2 -- Brian Hung (U-M) d. Jose Orozco, 6-4, 6-2
No. 3 -- Tim Bradshaw (WMU) d. #62 Ryan Heller, 6-3, 6-4
No. 4 -- Andrew Mazlin (U-M) d. Alex Birchmeier, 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-2
No. 5 -- Steve Peretz (U-M) d. Bryan Norville, 6-3, 6-3
No. 6 -- Kevin Hayward (WMU) d. Peter Aarts, 4-6, 6-1, 6-1
Doubles
No. 1 -- Crosby/Norville (WMU) d. Hung/Maravic, 9-8(5)
No. 2 -- Birchmeier/Orozco (WMU) d. Heller/Mazlin, 9-7
No. 3 -- Bradshaw/French (WMU) d. Aarts/Peretz, 9-7
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-2-1, Singles 5-3-2-6-1-4
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
