March 21, 2004
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Santa Clara University men's tennis team won its second straight contest, a 6-1 victory over the U.S. Air Force this afternoon at the Degheri Tennis Center. The Broncos' record improves to 7-8 overall, while the Falcons fall to 9-6.
The Broncos swept doubles to earn the afternoon's first point. Junior Francisco Zepponi earned his 10th victory of the season with his three-set win on court four, while teammate Taylor Bedilion clinched the team victory with his 6-4, 6-0 win over USAF's Trevor Johnson.
The Falcons avoided the shut out with 64th-ranked Shannon Buck's 7-5, 6-2 victory over No. 81 Gernot Fischer.
"It was a long week with finals and a fundraising event, but we got back into the flow in doubles, and continued our success in singles", SCU head coach George Husack said. "Each team member had different struggles that they were dealing with mentally, but they worked through them and we earned the victory."
The Broncos will continue Spring Break on the road against three nationally-ranked opponents, with a Tuesday contest at No. 72 UC Santa Barbara, a Thursday battle at 26th-ranked Arizona State and a Saturday match at No. 61 San Diego State.
"This week will provide a tremendous opportunity for our program," Husack added. "We're ready to go."
Santa Clara def. U.S. Air Force 6-1
Doubles
1. Fischer/Chen (SCU) def. McClung/Buck (USAF) 8-3
2. Kochanski/ Ben Hidalgo (SCU) def. Dong/Johnson (USAF) 8-4
3. Bedilion/McQuaid (SCU) def. Lau/Sky Jensen (USAF) 8-3
Singles
1. No. 64 Shannon Buck (USAF) def. No. 81 Gernot Fischer (SCU) 7-5, 6-2
2. Taylor Bedilion (SCU) def. Trevor Johnson (USAF) 6-4, 6-0*
3. Erich Chen (SCU) def. Tyler McClung (USAF) 6-4, 6-4
4. Francisco Zepponi (SCU) def. Chris Dong (USAF) 1-6, 7-5, (10-5)
5. Kevin McQuaid (SCU) def. Justin Lau (USAF) 6-2, 6-0
6. Eric Kochanski (SCU) def. Robert Alexander (USAF) 6-2, 6-2
* Clinched Team Victory