Collegetown, Minn. – The Saint Scholastica men's tennis team traveled south to Collegetown, Minn., to partake in a MIAC match against the Johnnies of Saint John's University. Today's match ended in a disappointing loss for the Saints, who came up short at the end of the day, finishing with a score of 6-3.
How it Happened
Doubles
Dane Patten (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) and Jack Onkka (Thief River Falls, Minn./Thief River Falls HS) were the only doubles pairing for the Saints to capture victory. Competing at No. 2 doubles, D. Patten and Onkka faced their Johnny opponents with determination, claiming the win with a final score of 8-5.
At the No. 1 doubles spot for the Saints were Jonas Abeleda (Sydney, Australia/St Aloysius' College) and Eamon Gerrard-Stace (Brisbane, Au./St Joseph's Nudgee College), who concluded their match just one point from victory. They fought valiantly against the Johnnies, but ended after scoring 7(4)-8(7).
Reece Patten (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) and Alex Daigneault (Agua Dulce, Calif./Hart HS) were at the No. 3 doubles spot for the Saints this afternoon. While they also competed against their opponents excellently, they ended just short with a score of 4-8.
Singles
By coincidence, Abeleda and Gerrard-Stace, the doubles pairing who competed at the No. 1 spot, were the only two Saints to succeed in singles. Abeleda, who competed at No. 1 singles, claimed his singles victory over the Johnnies with scores of 6-0 and 6-3. At No. 3 singles, Gerrard-Stace triumphed over the Johnnies in his match, scoring 6-2 and 6-3.
Three Saints forced a third set against the Johnnies in their singles matches. Harper Dircks (Hopkins, Minn./Hopkins HS) was the first to do so, at No. 4 singles, he succeeded in the second set, but fell in the first and third, finishing with scores of 2-6, 7-5, and 0-1. R. Patten, at No. 5 singles, was the second Saint to force a third set but come up short. He finished his match scoring 6-3, 3-6, and 0-1. Finally, Jose Naranjo (Brisbane, Australia/Cavendish Road State HS), who competed at No. 6 singles, finished with a near-identical score as R. Patten, 3-6, 6-3, and 0-1.
D. Patten, who competed at No. 2 singles, was bested in just two sets; he finished with scores of 1-6 and 6(4)-7(6).
What's Next
The Saints (8-7, 4-4 MIAC) will travel to Eau Claire, Wis., to compete against the Blugolds (4-7) of the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire on Thursday, April 24; match time is scheduled for 5 p.m.
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