Gonzaga University men’s tennis produced a dominant display in its first outing of the spring season, defeating the Eastern Washington Eagles 6-1.

The matchup saw five out of six singles matches end in two sets.

GU’s doubles pairings started off the team’s strong performance, setting the tone for the rest of the match. The Zag pairings won two of three doubles matches played.

The combo of Leon Roider and Pablo Galvan Gomez proved to be too much for Eagles Tyler Waddock and Arshjot Bhatti, as the Zag pair cruised to a commanding win.

“I was so proud of both of them,” said head coach D.J. Gurule. “They played exceptional. It started with them both being aggressive in doubles, and the confidence just continued into singles. I thought they were both crucial in our win today.” 

Two time All-WCC Doubles second team teammates Matthew Hollingworth and Sasha Trkulja’s match went back and forth, seeing multiple lead changes early. Caden Kammerer and Tyler Dalos of the Eagles put their foot on the gas and did not let up, defeating the Zag pair. 

As both teams watched the final doubles match of the day, the overall score favored GU. Tension was high with each serve until the pair of Gus Krauel and Tom Dunlop produced a win for the Zags.

GU’s three teams that faced against the Eagles featured both longtime collegiate tennis athletes and rookies who had yet to play their first dual match.

Gurule finds the team’s mix of veteran leadership and youthful exuberance to be an asset to the program.

“It’s just an amazing mix of guys, they are all quality humans,” Gurule said. “They push each other, hold themselves accountable and believe in one another.  It’s such an important bond that they have developed. It allows them to trust each other on and off the court.”

As singles play began, the Zags were represented by Sasha Trkulja in the matchup of first-seeded singles. The two-time All-WCC second teamer found himself down 2-0 early in the first set before changing gears and conceding just three games for the rest of the match as he cruised to a win for GU. 

“Sasha [Trkulja] is such a great competitor,” Gurule said. “He is never out of any match regardless of the score … He never plays the score, he just competes in the moment. It’s what makes him one of the best players in the country and he is only going to get better and better as the year goes on.”

The second and third-seeded matches were wrapped up handily, with both Hollingworth and Roider taking 2-0 match wins. 

Roider’s singles win was as dominant as his doubles win, as both sets ended 6-1.

Two dramatic finishes were seen in Gomez’s fourth-seeded match and Dunlop’s fifth-seeded match.

Gomez’s match required extra games in its second set and Dunlop lost his first collegiate match in a dramatic final set, with the set’s final score reading 10-7.

The sixth-seeded match featured Oscar Rashed of GU in his first match for the team who came away with a solid victory, earning a win in two sets both scored  6-2. 

The dual meet win starts GU off 1-0 to begin the spring season, and it will look ahead to a matchup against Idaho in the Stevens Center on Sunday.