AUBURN, Ala. (EETV) - The Auburn Men's Tennis team took to the courts against the Old Dominion Monarchs Wednesday afternoon, defeating them with a score of 6-1 in Auburn.
NCAA doubles finalists Finn Murgett and Tad Maclean had their spring debut against Younes Lalami and Oliver Nolan of the Monarchs. Murgett and Maclean returned with a 6-2 win to mark Auburn's first win of the day.
To clinch the doubles point for the Tigers, Raul Dobai and Maxwell Giddens won 6-4 over Francois Le Tallec and Yevhen Sirous.
"I loved our doubles," Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said. "ODU is historically a very strong doubles team, and this year is no different, so for us to get up quick and get some breaks was a terrific start for us."
The Tigers came out of the gates firing in singles, winning the first set in five of six matches. Freshman Will Nolan was the first to give Auburn a singles point with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Oliver Nolan of Old Dominion.
Junior Jan Galka pushed Auburn's lead to 3-0 with a 6-3, 6-4 win, and Murgett finished his day with a tiebreaker win (6-3, 4-6, 1-0) over Cody van Schalkwyk to complete Auburn's 6-1 win.
"I thought we transitioned that well into singles, getting some quick first sets on four, five and six." Reynolds continued, "That kept the pressure on, and that effort was what we were looking for."
Auburn moves to 3-0 on the spring campaign, and Old Dominion falls to 1-1. Auburn will continue its home stint against Indiana and Wisconsin on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Vanderbilt will also be in Auburn to play Indiana and Wisconsin but will not play against Auburn.
Auburn Tennis, men's and women's, is held in the Yarbrough Tennis Center on Richland Road, and admission is free for everyone.
