The UNM men's tennis team took an impressive 7-0 victory against Northern Arizona University Sunday afternoon at the Lobo Tennis Complex.
The Lobos powered their way to the first victory of the spring season and improved their record to 1-0. UNM dominated from the first match until the last and lost only one set.
"We're not a team of stars, we're a solid and very close team," head coach Alan Dils said.
Freshman David Kowalski and junior Bart Scott set the stage in number one doubles action versus NAU's Adrian Venturi and Jonathan John. Kowalski, from Carlsbad, N.M., used a powerful serve and good return game to help the team take an early 4-2 lead. With the Lobos up two points to one in the seventh set, Kowalski delivered an ace down the line and followed with another serve that could not be returned to give UNM a 5-2 lead.
Scott squashed any chance of a Lumberjack comeback when he used his overpowering serve, which included one ace, to give the Lobos a 6-3 lead. Scott finished the match in style with an ace to post an 8-4 victory.
Kowalski said he and Scott have a good partnership that led to their success.
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"We have a good chemistry," Kowalski said. "I don't think I could play like that with anyone else."
In other doubles action, seniors Michael Polasek and Diego Garza earned a hard fought 8-6 victory against Jeff Johnson and Daniel Lundstrom, while junior Brent Salazar and freshman Ryan Stotland took their match 8-2 versus Jeremy Coll and Thibault Schram. In singles matches, the Lobos top seeded sophomore Divan Coetzee defeated Daniel Lundstrom 6-2, 6-4; while Kowalski cruised to an easy 6-0, 6-1 win over Venturi at the number two position. Scott rounded out the top three with an impressive 6-1, 6-2 victory against John. David's older brother, senior John Kowalski, followed his younger brother in the victory column by posting a tough 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 victory over Johnson. Garza also won his match against Schram 6-3, 6-2 in the number five singles position. Stotland completed the clean sweep by winning at the number six position against Coll in easy fashion 6-3, 6-2.
Dils said the game is a good start for the team.
"Our goal is to win the Mountain West and anything else would be a disappointment," he said.
The Lobos' next match is on the road when they travel to Boise, Idaho, Jan. 25 for the Team Indoor Regional Qualifying matches.
