COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- All season, North Dakota head tennis coach
Tom Boysen has been preaching to his team about overcoming adversity and responding to it in a positive way. Well, his team painted a perfect example of doing so in a spirited, 4-3 rally over Air Force Academy on Saturday afternoon from the USAFA Outdoor Tennis Courts in Colorado Springs, Colo.
UND (10-6) not only dropped the doubles point, but fell in the first set during five of the six singles matches before rallying to notch its third victory in the last four matches and move four over the .500 mark on the season.
"Incredible college tennis match," said Boysen. "In my years as a college tennis coach, I think this is the first time I've been on the winning side of a match where we lost the doubles point and five of the six first sets in singles. To do it on the road - in altitude and windy conditions no less - says a lot about the character of our team. We just wouldn't go away, and by sticking around and fighting, many of us played our best tennis at the end of the match."
The Falcons jumped out to that 1-0 lead in doubles play, with victories on the No. 1 and 2 courts. North Dakota did build some momentum in two-man play, however, with
Riley Odell and
Dylan Leeman picking up a 7-5 win at the bottom spot.
AFA pushed its lead to 2-0 following a victory in straight sets at the No. 2 court and looked to take prime control of the match with four other wins in first sets, but once again, UND began to rally.
Nikita Snezhko was the lone Fighting Hawk to grab a win in the first set and used that to notch a 6-3, 6-4 victory on the No. 4 court to get the visitors on the board, but the Falcons grabbed a third point with a triumph at the top spot.
The first of three matches to go to a tiebreaker, Leeman brought the Hawks within one by bouncing back from a 7-5 loss in the opening frame to notch 6-1, 6-3 scores over the next sets to grab a win on the bottom court. His doubles partner, Odell, followed suit by posting a 2-6, 7-5, 6-2 triumph at the No. 5 position to even the match score at 3-3.
All eyes turned to the No. 3 court, where
Cian McDonnell dropped the opening frame, 6-2, but rallied with a 7-5 win in the middle frame to force the tiebreaker to decide the match. In that final stanza, McDonnell overcame an early deficit to take control and post a 6-3 victory.
"As we continue to challenge the team with a tough schedule and new obstacles, this win should go a long way in our maturation process," said Boysen. "Winning all 3 matches that went to a third set, and winning all of them after losing the first sets, is a huge accomplishment. We will go into our match against Denver tomorrow as a confident, hungry team."
North Dakota will battle the Summit League favorite Pioneers on Sunday morning at 11 a.m. from Denver.
