April 13, 2008

Results

Malibu, CA - After earning a No. 66 ranking by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association last week, the Saint Mary's men's tennis team was unable to top their West Coast Conference foes, falling to Pepperdine 6-1. With the loss the Gaels drop to 13-6 overall, and will play in one final regular season match, before participating in the WCC Tournament.

Senior Joel Kusnierz recorded Saint Mary's lone point and had a huge match for the Gaels at the No. 1 position, topping No. 6 ranked Andre Begemann in three close sets. Kusnierz dropped the first set to the Wave, 5-7, but was able to fight out a close second set, posting a 7-6 (5) win. In the determining set the senior was not about to let the match slip away, battling it out to the end and recording a 10-8 win.

"Joel's match was definitely the highlight of the day," said Head Coach Michael Wayman. "It is probably the best win in the history of the program. He had to play a very solid match to defeat that caliber of player."

Other than Kusnierz's stunning match at the No. 1 singles position, the Gaels seemed unable to muster up any type of enthusiasm or intensity to top the highly skilled Pepperdine team. No other Saint Mary's member was able record a win, succumbing to the Waves, 6-1.

The Gaels will finish the regular season against Loyola Marymount on Sunday, April 13 at 11:00 AM in Los Angeles, CA.