Box Score CLEVELAND, MISSISSIPPI – UT Tyler men's tennis kicked off their 2024 season on the right note as they took down Delta State by a score of 6-1 on Thursday afternoon.
 
The Patriots began their big day in doubles, where they swept the doubles matches to quickly earn a 1-0 lead. In the matches, the pair of Joaquin Bianchi and Carel Wessel took just 18 minutes in slot #2 to put the Patriots in the drivers seat for doubles.
 
Next up was Jordi Garcia Portell and Job Japelj, who completed their own 6-2 win to ensure a Patriots doubles win. Daniil Felker and Egor Shestakov combined in slot #1, and they pulled away in a 6-4 win to complete the doubles sweep.
 
Moving into singles, #3 slotted Felker would get the Patriots party rolling even further, as he dropped just two games over his straight sets win by a score of 6-0, 6-2 to put another point on the board.
 
Just a few minutes later, Wessel would complete his own straight sets win by scores of 6-2, 6-1 to put the Patriots just one point away from securing the win.
 
That match point came from the #2 slot, as Shestakov looked just as dominant in a straight sets 6-1, 6-3 win as he never lost his serve and broke his opponent's serve on three separate occasions.
 
Yudai Watanabe took on the #6 slot for the Patriots on the day, and he too would claim a straight sets win by scores of 6-4, 6-2 to give the Patriots their fifth point of the match.
 
The final point of the day for UT Tyler came from the #1 singles slot, as Bianchi would battle his way through a third set tiebreaker to earn his win by scores of 6-3, 2-6, (10-7) to get the win.
 
The #9 ranked Patriots will now head to Clinton, Mississippi where they will round out their opening weekend of action with a match against Mississippi College. That match is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start on Friday afternoon.