The Michigan Tech Huskies men’s tennis team (0-12, 0-8 GLIAC) wrapped up their season with a journey down to Tiffin, Ohio and Detroit, Michigan to take on the Tiffin Dragons (11-12, 3-5 GLIAC) and the Wayne State Warriors (13-10, 6-2 GLIAC). Tech wasn’t able to produce very much offense the whole weekend as they lost to the Dragons by a score of 8-1 while the Warriors topped the Huskies by a score of 9-0.
On Friday, April 13, the first singles match of the day was over before it even started as Tiffin’s Luis Ludena scored the first point by default (when a player accidentally or purposefully injures another player, spectator, or official) over junior Mario Neto. Tiffin’s Santiago de la Rosa gave Tiffin its second point as he defeated freshman Nico Caviglia by scores of 7-5 and 6-3. In the third singles match Tiffin’s Nikita Parfenov got past freshman Ignacio Carbajosa by scores of 6-2 and 6-2. Freshman Simon Xiong gave Tech its only point of the day as he defeated Tiffin’s Toby Cutting in a retirement by a score of 3-1. Tiffin’s Tom Arias took the fourth singles match from junior Juan Felipe Chica by scores of 6-3 and 6-3. In the final singles match senior Illiya Chibirev fell to Tiffin’s Austin Mohamedali by scores of 6-1 and 6-2.
In the first doubles match Tiffin’s Ludena and Elio Lezama Perez narrowly slipped past Neto and Carbajosa by a score of 8-4. Tiffin’s Parfenov and Sorin Navrotchi trampled Chica and Caviglia by a score of 8-2. Tiffin’s Mohamedali and Hugo Chatras sealed the deal for the Dragons, as they defeated Chibirev and Xiong by a score of 8-2.
On Saturday, April 14, Caviglia started things off for the Huskies against Wayne State’s Mats Westkamp, however, Caviglia fell by scores of 6-0 and 6-0. Wayne State’s Niklas Karcz kept the Warriors rolling as he defeated Carbajosa by scores of 6-0 and 6-2. The Warrior’s Taylor Vane put the hurt on Xiong, defeating him by scores of 6-0 and 6-1. Chica fell to Wayne State’s Griffin Mertz by scores of 6-0 and 6-1 in the fourth singles match. Chibirev put up a fight against Wayne State’s Harvey Reed, but fell by scores of 6-2 and 6-4. The final singles match was won by Wayne State’s Derek Sammons by default.
The Warriors’ Westkamp and Karcz defeated Neto and Carbajosa in the first doubles match by a score of 8-2. Chica and Caviglia fell to the Warriors’ Vane and Mertz by the same score as the first doubles match of 8-2. Wayne State’s Reed and Sammons capped off the Warriors’ perfect day by defeating Chibirev and Xiong by a score of 8-1.
This was the Huskies’ final match of the season, and senior Illiya Chibirev (Calgary, Alberta) will be greatly missed, and Michigan Tech as a whole will miss him dearly and wishes him the best of luck in his future.
