Men's Tennis | 3/30/2013 9:40:00 AM
La Habra, Calif. – The McPherson College Bulldogs wrapped up their California trip with a double-header. The Bulldogs first played Hope International University at La Habra Tennis Center for their AM match then traveled 15 minutes away to take on Biola University for their afternoon contest.
The Bulldog’s had some close frustrating losses but buckled down to take care of their matches today. Against, Hope International University the ‘Dogs played a little tight in doubles, but eventually found a way to get some separation from Royals to clean up all three doubles points and take a 3-0 lead into singles.
In singles, action, the Bulldog’s looked more confident. Senior Torsten Keil-Long (Claremont, Calif.) got the Mac on the right track winning his match in dominating style 6-1, 6-1. He was followed by Freshman Adolfo Serafin (Maracay, Venezuela) with his 6-3, 6-4 victory to give the Bulldog’s the win. Sophomore Rafael Bulnes (Rosmalen, Netherlands) was able to shake off a feisty player in John-Douglas Owens to add to the Bulldog’s total with a strong 6-4, 6-0 victory. Junior Sean De Young (Anaheim, Calif.) overcame a mistake ridden first set to make a furious come back and win his match 3-6, 6-3, 10-6. Senior Slav Bukatin (Moscow, Russia) was unable to capture the third set tie-breaker to win his match and Mark Mahan (Fullerton, Calif.) fell in his match 6-3, 6-2 to Jake Barnard.
“We played well in this match,” said head McPherson coach Jeff Benito. “I could see the frustration on the team’s face from the close matches we had with higher ranked teams this week, but we were able to put it together today against a tough Hope International University team which has been receiving votes in the NAIA poll.”
Final Score:
McPherson College 7, Hope International University 2
Doubles:
1) Bukatin/Dullaghan (Mac) def. Ownes/Pires (HIU) 8-6
2) Mahan/Keil-Long (Mac) def. Correa/Brito (HIU) 8-6
3) Bulnes/De Young (Mac) def. Barnard/McDonald (HIU) 8-4
Singles:
1) Rafael Bulnes (Mac) def. John-Douglas Owens (HIU) 6-4,6-0
2) Enzo Correa (HIU) def. Slav Bukatin (Mac) 6-2, 2-6, 10-8
3) Jake Barnard (HIU) def. Mark Mahan (Mac) 6-3, 6-2
4) Torsten Keil-Long (Mac) def. Leonardo Pires (HIU) 6-1, 6-1
5) Sean De Young (Mac) def. Tyler McDonald (HIU) 3-6, 6-3, 10-8
6) Adolfo Serafin (Mac) def. Thiago Brito (HIU) 6-3, 6-4
La Mirada, CA. - After a tough battle with Hope International University the Bulldog’s traveled up the road to take on Biola University in their final match of the Southern California tour. The MC carried their momentum and energy from their last win and dominated the Eagles.
In doubles, the McPherson doubles team played in excellent form as they cleaned up their matches quickly to give the ‘Dogs another 3-0 lead going into singles play. Mahan and Keil-Long looked especially strong at number three doubles using their serves and ground-strokes to dictate the match.
In singles, it was all McPherson as the Bulldog’s ran away with the match and a satisfying victory. Bulnes played a very tactful match to defeat a very good opponent in David Mossman who is currently ranked #47 in the ITA Singles National Ranking. Bukatin earned a great victory at second singles defeating his opponent 6-2, 6-4. Senior Keil-Long played a very good opponent in Brandon Chang and was able to stay focused and turn back his opponent with a very convincing 6-1, 6-1 victory. Fellow Senior Ronaldo Filho (Sao Paulo, Brazil) cruised in his match as well with a 6-2, 6-0 victory at fifth singles, while freshman Serafin also had little trouble with is opponent at fourth singles downing him 6-1, 6-0.
Sophomore Jordan Stewart (Sterling, Kan.) shook off a shaky start in his match but came up with a good personal victory. Stewart was ahead in the first set until his serve was broken, but was able to force a tie-breaker. Stewart was unfortunately defeated in the tie-breaker but surged back quickly in the second set. He came out with authority and used his ground-strokes to dictate the rest of the match. Stewart took the second set 6-3 and then cleaned it up in the third set tie-breaker 10-3 to give the Bulldog’s a sweep in their final match of their California trip.
“Jordan really grew as a player in this match,” said Benito. “He was able to figure things out for himself and needed little help from me to get him through the match. I’m very proud of how he played.
“The team played well as a whole today. We took care of what we needed to do and we executed well despite being quite beat up physically from the tough matches we played during the trip. Overall, I am satisfied with our results from this tour. We stood toe-toe with the No. 3 ranked team in the Nation in Vanguard University. We played NCAA Division II Point Loma Nazarene and No. 9 ranked Concorida University – Irvine tough and actually had opportunities to win both matches; I believe we earned the respect of from these highly regarded programs and their coaches. Finally, we put it together on our last day of competition to bring home two satisfying victories and a .500 record in California which is a tennis rich state in terms of talent. We showed we can compete on the national level and we can take our experience here to make us better for the remainder of the season.”
The Bulldog’s have two home matches coming up on Saturday, April 6. The Bulldog’s will play their KCAC opener against Kansas Wesleyan University at 9:00 a.m. (CT) and then take on regional rival Baker University at 5:00 p.m. Come out and support your Bulldogs!
Final Scores:
McPherson College 9, Biola University 0
Doubles:
1) Bukatin/Dullaghan (Mac) def. Mossman/Pekary (BU) 8-5
2) Bulnes/De Young (Mac) def. Chang/Pence (BU) 8-5
3) Mahan/Keil-Long (Mac) def. Cobian/Evans (BU) 8-3
Singles:
1) Rafael Bulnes (Mac) def. David Mossman (BU) 6-1, 6-0
2) Slav Bukatin (Mac) def. Isaiah Pekary (BU) 6-2, 6-4
3) Torsten Keil-Long (Mac) def. Brandon Chang (BU) 6-1, 6-1
4) Adolfo Serafin (Mac) def. Chris Evans (BU) 6-1, 6-0
5) Ronaldo Filho (Mac) def. Richard Pence (BU) 6-2, 6-0
6) Jordan Stewart (Mac) def. Greg Cobian (BU) 6-7, 6-3, 10-3
