ST. PETERSBURG -- The Eckerd Tritons men's tennis team came up short in its SSC opener on Monday, falling to the No. 16 ranked Embry-Riddle Eagles by a score of 4-3.
The Tritons collected the early doubles point after winning two of three matches to begin the contest.
Batu Ataseven and
Amirali Ghavam secured a victory at the No. 1 spot by a score of 6-3, while teammates
Adrian Gheorghe and
Marshall Hulett earned a 6-2 decision at No. 3. Eckerd led 1-0 entering singles play.Â
Ghavam capped off his afternoon with a straight-sets victory at No. 3 singles, earning a 6-1, 6-2 decision.
Konrad Fischer picked up his first win of the season at the No. 4 spot, rolling to a 6-3, 6-0 triumph to bring the Tritons within one point of clinching the match.
Embry-Riddle secured wins in straight sets at No. 5 and 6, while also prevailing in both three-set matches at the top of the lineup. Ataseven rebounded from a 6-0 opening-set loss with a 6-3 second set to force a third, but ultimately fell 6-3 in the decider. At No. 2, Mario Kirkov dropped a hard-fought match after taking the first set 7-5 before losing a second-set tiebreaker and a 6-0 third set.
Eckerd will be back in action Wednesday to host New College of Florida.Â
