RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The tension was palpable as the lights came on at the Orville Cox Tennis Center, with The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros men’s tennis team leading rival Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 3-1 in the South Texas Showdown presented by Rally Credit Union.
For 14 years, the Islanders controlled the rivalry, winning every match between the squads since 2010. But on Sunday, sophomore McAllen Memorial alum Agustin Salazar put an end to the run as he captured a hard-earned 7-6 (8:6), 6-4 win in the No. 2 singles match. Salazar roped a shot just over the net, forcing his opponent to send the ball out of bounds and his teammates racing to his court to celebrate the massive 4-3 win.
The Vaqueros (3-4) jumped out to a 1-0 lead after doubles. The No. 2 duo of freshmen Paolo Bonaguro and Will Roberts was dynamic and brought great energy, cruising to a 6-1 win. The Islanders evened things up with a win on court one.
Salazar and freshman Ivo Isqueiro showed their grit to battle from behind when it mattered most in the No. 3 match. From trailing 2-4, the Vaqueros went on a roll backed by powerful shots to dominate the back end of the match and secure the doubles point, 6-4.
Freshman Santiago Serrano was firing on all cylinders in the No. 4 match. He was ripping the ball en route to a one-sided 6-1, 6-0 win to extend the UTRGV lead to 2-0. The Islanders (4-1) got one back with a straight-set win at No. 1.
Junior Sam Whitehead got the edge back for the Vaqueros with an exciting match on the third court. Whitehead played sound tennis, attacking the net well to capture a 6-2, 6-4 win and put the victory within reach at 3-1.
Isqueiro and Bonaguro competed well in three-set thrillers on the fifth and sixth courts. Isqueiro bounced back from dropping the first set of his match, 4-6, to take the second 6-4. He battled well but AMCC’s Antoine Vicaire held on to take the third, 6-4. Bonaguro played with great energy and pumped up his team from the far court, but Nicolas Trebuchet took the 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 win.
Up next for UTRGV is a trip to Lafayette for the Louisiana Winter Classic playing Feb. 2-3.
UTRGV Results
Doubles (2, 1, 3)
1. Etienne Marty/Avery Zavala (AMCC) def. Emilien Burnel/Sam Whitehead (UTRGV) 6-1
2. Paolo Bonaguro/Will Roberts (UTRGV) def. Nicolas Trebuchet/Iannis Fernandes (AMCC) 6-1
3. Ivo Isqueiro/Agustin Salazar (UTRGV) def. Antoine Vicaire/Matthieu Coignet (AMCC) 6-4
Singles (4, 1, 3, 2, 5, 6)
1. Avery Zavala (AMCC) def. Emilien Burnel (UTRGV) 6-3, 6-3
2. Agustin Salazar (UTRGV) def. Etienne Marty (AMCC) 7-6 (8:6), 6-4
3. Sam Whitehead (UTRGV) def. Lucas Schurdevin (AMCC) 6-2, 6-4
4. Santiago Serrano (UTRGV) def. Iannis Fernandes (AMCC) 6-1, 6-0
5. Antoine Vicaire (AMCC) def. Ivo Isqueiro (UTRGV) 6-4, 4-6, 6-4
6. Nicolas Trebuchet (AMCC) def. Paolo Bonaguro (UTRGV) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
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