The men's tennis team, jockeying for higher position in the upcoming Mid-American Conference tournament, faced off in two matches over the weekend. The premise was simple: win and face the league's bottom-feeders in the tournament, or lose and go up against a significantly better squad.
If the team won both its matches, it would take on winless Chicago State (0-19, 0-5 MAC), while a loss in either match would force it into a battle against Ball State (12-14, 2-3 MAC) or Northern Illinois (11-15, 1-4 MAC).
The Bulls (11-7, 3-2 MAC) didn't care to see Ball State or Northern Illinois in the tournament just yet. Buffalo downed Ball State, 4-3, on Friday, and Northern Illinois, 6-1, on Sunday.
With the victories, Buffalo clinched the third seed in the tournament, behind powerhouses Western Michigan (14-10, 5-0 MAC) and Toledo (23-9, 4-1 MAC). Though the Bulls were the No. 1 seed in the 2010 MAC tournament, last year's champion—Western Michigan – entered the tournament as the third seed. Head coach Lee Nickell is optimistic about his team's chances.
"We like our chances and we're ready to make a run," Nickell said. "The key for us is to stay healthy, because with a full squad we can beat anybody. I think that showed with our results. We also need to keep the positive momentum going right now, because we have so much momentum heading into the tournament."
Sophomores George Tibil and Vusa Hove once again carried the team. The duo improved to a 6-0 record when paired together. Tibil and Hove defeated Ball State's Shaun Bussert and Austin Sansone, 9-7, and Northern Illinois' Bryant Poggensee-Wei and Tyler Stephens, 8-1.
Friday's match marked Tibil's return to the court following an injury. Head coach Lee Nickell is thrilled to have the sophomore back, and equally pleased with how Tibil has performed with Hove.
"They just work well together," Nickell said. "George is a great teammate for Vusa. Their energy is always tip-top. That's why they're able to win all their matches."
Hove filled in perfectly for Tibil while he was injured, and he's not slowing down now that Tibil is back. Hove won his team-leading 19th and 20th matches of the season with victories over Ball State's Cliff Morrison, 7-5, 6-0, and Northern Illinois' Axel Lagerlof, 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-8).
Sunday's match was the final home appearance for seniors Marcelo Mazzetto and Mitch Zenaty. Zenaty defeated Tyler Stephens, 6-2, 6-0, and Mazzetto took down Maksym Lagutin, 6-1, 6-1.
Both athletes also won their doubles matches. Zenaty paired with junior Wojceich Starakiewicz to overcome Lagerlof and Roman Turtygin, 8-4. Mazzetto and freshman Travis Zappia beat Lagutin and Maksym Bartiuk, 8-5. Nickell was pleased to send the seniors out with a win.
Buffalo went 5-1 in doubles matches over the weekend.
Both matches were played at the Miller Tennis Center in Williamsville, and Nickell considered the home court a major advantage. The team is 10-1 at home the past two years.
The Bulls will head into Kalamazoo, Mich. for the MAC tournament, which begins on Thursday. The team will take on Chicago State in one quarterfinal, while Northern Illinois and Ball State will go head-to-head in the other first round match.
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Photo: Paul Hokanson/UB Athletics
Photo: Paul Hokanson/UB Athletics
