East Carolina University
Temple
ECU Splits Conference Road Trip at Temple, UConn
February 13, 2016 | Men's Tennis
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - The East Carolina men's tennis team split a pair of road matches against American Conference foes, shutting out Connecticut, 7-0, on Friday before being tripped up at Temple, 4-3, Saturday afternoon.
Tendai Tapfuma, Kasey Countee and Will Bissett posted respective 2-0 singles marks, as Tapfuma has now won three-straight matches - all of which have come playing in the No. 1 spot in the lineup.
The Pirates had little trouble with the Huskies, as Tapfuma and James Ling earned a 6-4 victory over Jacob Spreyer and Chris Toner in No. 1 doubles, before Countee and Bissett teamed up to take down Jonathan Edwards and Hank Hill, 6-2, to assist in clinching the doubles point.
Tapfuma (court one), Bissett (court six) and Ronny Georgi (court five) won their respective matches in straight sets, while Vlad Anghel (court two), Fredric Lehfeldt (court three) and Countee (court four) each rallied from lost first sets to win the second and third frames in their individual matchups to complete the shutout.
On Saturday, East Carolina (6-2) fell into an early hole against Temple after dropping the doubles point with setbacks on courts two and three, marking just the second time this season the purple and gold could not secure the first team point in a dual match.
Bissett was the only Pirate to claim a straight-set victory, 6-3, 6-2, over Fliip Stipcic on court six, as four of the six singles matchups were decided in three frames. Tapfuma and Countee bounced back from lost first sets to earn wins, but ECU was not able to pull out a victory on the other three courts, despite Lehfeldt and Georgi forcing tiebreakers in their respective third sets. The Owls closed out on three singles courts to survive for the tight, 4-3 victory.
East Carolina will return to action Friday, Feb. 19 when it travels to Norfolk, Va., to take on Old Dominion. First serve is scheduled for 11 a.m.
East Carolina 7, Connecticut 0
Singles competition
1. Tendai Tapfuma (ECU) def. Jacob Spreyer (UCONN) 6-3, 6-1
2. Vlad Anghel (ECU) def. Chris Toner (UCONN) 5-7, 6-4, 6-3
3. Fredric Lehfeldt (ECU) def. Justin Warren (UCONN) 4-6, 7-5, 6-4
4. Kasey Countee (ECU) def. Zac McEntee (UCONN) 2-6, 6-3, 6-3
5. Ronny Georgi (ECU) def. Arnaud Valentin (UCONN) 7-6 (8-6), 6-3
6. Will Bissett (ECU) def. Hank Hill (UCONN) 6-3, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Tendai Tapfuma/James Ling (ECU) def. Chris Toner/Jacob Spreyer (UCONN) 6-4
2. Zac McEntee/Arnaud Valentin (UCONN) vs. Vlad Anghel/Fredric Lehfeldt (ECU) unfinished
3. Kasey Countee/Will Bissett (ECU) def. Jonathan Edwards/Hank Hill (UCONN) 6-2
Temple 4, East Carolina 3
Singles competition
1. Tendai Tapfuma (ECU) def. Santiago Canete (TEMPLE) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
2. Artem Kapshuk (TEMPLE) def. Vlad Anghel (ECU) 6-2, 7-6 (7-4)
3. Nicolas Paulus (TEMPLE) def. Fredric Lehfeldt (ECU) 2-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5)
4. Kasey Countee (ECU) def. Florian Mayer (TEMPLE) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
5. Uladzimir Dorash (TEMPLE) def. Ronny Georgi (ECU) 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (7-5)
6. Will Bissett (ECU) def. Filip Stipcic (TEMPLE) 6-3, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Vineet Naran/Hicham Belkssir (TEMPLE) vs. Tendai Tapfuma/James Ling (ECU) unfinished
2. Artem Kapshuk/Nicolas Paulus (TEMPLE) def. Fredric Lehfeldt/Vlad Anghel (ECU) 6-3
3. Florian Mayer/Uladzimir Dorash (TEMPLE) def. Kasey Countee/Will Bissett (ECU) 6-4
Players Mentioned
