WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Neal Devkaran (Fairfax, Va./Paul VI Catholic) pulled out a thrilling victory in a super tiebreaker set as the Kutztown University men's tennis team was slowed by the District of Columbia, 6-1, in non-conference action on Saturday.
The Golden Bears faced an uphill battle after conceding all three doubles matches but competed hard to make things interesting in singles.
Though the Firebirds (11-8) secured the victory by pushing their lead to 4-0 following third singles, flights 3-6 were all closely contested.
Devkaran improved to 6-1 on the season, including a perfect 6-0 at No. 6, with a come-from-behind 2-6, 7-6 (8), 10-7 victory over Mauricio Corty.
Teammates
Emmitt Robinson (Ingersoll, Ontario/Ingersoll District Collegiate Institute) and
Henrique Rocha (Jaticua, Brazil/Escola SEB Maceio) went to third sets at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
Robinson won his first set against Oskar Karos, 6-1, before Karos bounced back to win the second 6-2 and the third 6-1. Rocha also claimed his opening set over Juan Estevez Hernandez, 6-4, but the UDC entry evened the match with a 6-2 win in the second and captured the super tiebreaker 10-5.
Joaquin Perez (Pachuca, Mexico/Escuela Americana) nearly forced a third set at No. 3 to keep the match result in question but dropped his second set against Antonio Simo Durall in a tiebreaker as Durall went on to a 6-0, 7-6 (4) victory.
The Golden Bears (4-6) return to the Keystone Courts, Tuesday, for a PSAC match against Bloomsburg at 2 p.m.
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