Sacramento State finishes the year with a 12-10 record. |
OGDEN, Utah. - The Sacramento State men’s tennis team tried to rally after losing the doubles point, however, their quest for victory fell one point short as the Hornets were defeated by Idaho State, 4-3, Friday afternoon in the Big Sky Conference Tournament Semifinals in Ogden, Utah. The Hornets conclude their season with a 12-10 record. The Bengals, who improved to 12-7, advance to the Big Sky Championship for the second-consecutive year as they take on No. 1 seed Montana State. For Sacramento State, this marks the end of three-straight Big Sky Championships and a run of six-consective appearences in the championship match. Last year, the Hornets defeated Idaho State, 4-2, in the Big Sky Championship match. Idaho State opened the afternoon by taking two doubles matches to win the point. At the No. 1 doubles, senior Nick Sheehan and junior fell to Hestian Stoica and Ioannis Stavridis, 8-3. At the two, juniors Matt Jones and freshman Joakim Rydberg were defeated by Ivan Moferdin and Jemre Okoh, 8-4. At the three, freshmen Warwick Foy and Ramon Perez’s match versus Marc Pijoan and Pablo Garces did not finish due to Idaho State clinching the point.
In singles play, Jones defeated Stoica for the second time in as many matches as he won 7-5, 6-2. Jones concludes the year with a team best 15-7 singles record. At the two, Rydberg was defeated by Stavridis, 6-4, 6-1. Moferdin cliched the match for the Bengals as he defeated Sheehan at the three, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4) in the third set tiebreaker. Sheehan had won four-consecutive matches. At the No. 4 singles, Perez dropped his match to Pijoan, 6-1, 2-6, 6-3. At the five, Farkas finished the year with a 14-8 singles record with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Garces. Farkas’ record is his best singles mark in his three seasons for Sacramento State. At the six, Foy picked up a 6-2, 6-2 win over Masimbo Ruwo. Foy ended his freshman campaign by evening his singles record at 10-10.
“It’s really disapointing,” said head coach Sherif Zaher. “This will leave a bitter taste in our mouth’s all summer and into the fall. Hopefully, this will be a good lesson for all of the guys returning (next year). We came up short on our goals. I am pleased with the progress we made this year, however, there is a lot of room for improvement.”
Looking forward to next year, Sacramento State returns all players except Sheehan, who was the lone senior on the team. “This season was a great learning experience for my three freshman, who all posted good records,” said Zaher. “I have two key seniors in Jones and Farkas to help lead this team back to the NCAA Tournament.”
2004 Big Sky Conference Tournament Semifinals
Idaho State 4
Sacramento State 3
Weber State Tennis Courts, Ogden, Utah
Singles
1. Matt Jones (SAC) def. Hestian Stoica (ISU) 7-5, 6-2
2. Joakim Rydberg (SAC) def. by Ioannis Stavridis (ISU) 6-4, 6-1
3. Nick Sheehan (SAC) def. by Ivan Moferdin (ISU) 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4)*
4. Ramon Perez (SAC) def. by Marc Pijoan (ISU) 6-1, 2-6, 6-3
5. Peter Farkas (SAC) def. Pablo Garces (ISU) 6-3, 6-2
6. Warwick Foy (SAC) def. Masimbo Ruwo (ISU) 6-2, 6-2
Doubles
1. Sheehan/Farkas (SAC) def. by Stoica/Stavridis (ISU) 8-3
2. Jones/Rydberg (SAC) def. by Moferdin/Okoh (ISU) 8-4
3. Foy/Perez (SAC) vs. Garces/Pijoan (ISU) DNF
*Clinched Match for Idaho State
