Lakers Sweep Past Tigers To Close Regular Season
CHICAGO – Roosevelt ended the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference regular season on a high note by taking down Olivet Nazarene in both men's and women's action Saturday at XS Tennis.
The men prevailed 4-2 over the Tigers after a pair of doubles matches that nearly went the distance. Olivet Nazarene grabbed an early advantage with a win at No. 3 doubles, but the Lakers battled back to claim the doubles point with wins at the top-two positions. Victor Dorojan and Felipe Penuela teamed up for a 7-5 win at No. 1 then Justus Peters and Yazid Benchegra eked out a win at No. 2 by the same 7-5 scoreline.
In singles play, Olivet Nazarene bounced back with wins at the top-two spots, but could not overcome the bottom of the Lakers' lineup. Florian Van Der Brink won 6-1, 6-4 at No. 6 matching the score of Juan Pablo Espinosa's win at No. 5. Peters was on the verge of tying his match at one set a piece at the fourth spot, but Benchegra pulled out a 7-5, 6-0 victory to seal the match.
Roosevelt's women had a little bit easier of a time pulling past Olivet Nazarene courtesy of default wins at No. 3 doubles as well as No. 5 and No. 6 singles. Regardless, the Lakers still would have taken the doubles point in the match as Teodora Petrica and Alyssa Owens won 6-3 at No. 1 doubles while Ximena Mercado teamed up with Fabiola Rivas for a 6-1 win at No. 2.
The Tigers' only point came with a straight-sets win at No. 3 singles, but otherwise was no match for the Lakers at the other three positions. Petrica easily won her singles match 6-1, 6-3 to cap off a perfect 4-0 week on the court and solidify the match. Owens was up a set and serving with a 4-3 lead in the second set when the match was called while Geiger was tied at one set each and getting ready to start the decider.
The third-seeded Lakers men will host St. Francis on Monday at 11 a.m. in the CCAC Tournament. The women are the No. 2 seed and will host the Fighting Saints as well at 11 a.m. on Thursday.
Men's Results
Roosevelt 4, Olivet Nazarene 2
No. 1 Doubles – Victor Dorojan/Felipe Penuela won 7-5
No. 2 Doubles – Justus Peters/Yazid Benchegra won 7-5
No. 3 Doubles – David Hofmann/Demille Scarabello lost 6-0
No. 1 Singles – Victor Dorojan lost 4-6, 6-3, 6-2
No. 2 Singles – Felipe Penuela lost 7-5, 6-1
No. 3 Singles – Yazid Benchegra won 7-5, 6-0
No. 4 Singles – Justus Peters trailed 6-4, 3-3
No. 5 Singles – Juan Pablo Espinosa won 6-1, 6-4
No. 6 Singles – Florian Van Der Brink won 6-1, 6-4
Women's Results
Roosevelt 4, Olivet Nazarene 1
No. 1 Doubles – Teodora Petrica/Alyssa Owens won 6-3
No. 2 Doubles – Ximena Mercado/Fabiola Rivas won 6-1
No. 3 Doubles – Rebeca Geiger/Alejandra Chavez won by default
No. 1 Singles – Teodora Petrica won 6-1, 6-3
No. 2 Singles – Rebeca Geiger was tied 6-2, 0-6
No. 3 Singles – Grace Hahn lost 6-0, 6-1
No. 4 Singles – Alyssa Owens led 6-3, 4-3
No. 5 Singles – Alejandra Chavez won by default
No. 6 Singles – Ximena Mercado won by default