The University of Hawai’i men’s tennis team secured a 4-3 win against Portland at the UH Tennis Complex on Saturday, marking their second victory of the season and closing out their opening homestand. Freshman Kent Mueller played a key role by clinching the match with a three-set comeback win.
Hawai’i started strong by taking the doubles point for the third time this season. After losing at No. 1 doubles, Toa Maeda and Azuma Visaya won their match 6-2, while Kent Mueller and Adriano Dzhenev sealed the point with a 6-3 win.
In singles play, Dzhenev quickly defeated Elijah Noel in straight sets to give Hawai’i a 2-0 lead. Portland’s Cade Fernandez responded by beating Kosuke Nakanishi, narrowing the gap to 2-1. Visaya extended Hawai’i’s lead with a straight-set victory over Nikola Keremedchev.
Mueller then delivered in his singles match against Tanner Binder, coming from behind to win 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 and secure the overall team victory for Hawai’i. “Mueller was clutch down the stretch, winning four of the last five games in the third and deciding set to record a 2-6, 6-2, 7-5,” according to the team.
Portland closed out with wins on courts two and five. Timothy Li took his first set against Tom Garcia in a tiebreak but lost in three sets. On court five, Maeda split sets with Gian Manhas before falling in a super-tiebreaker.
With this result, both teams now hold records of two wins and three losses. The Rainbow Warriors will begin their road schedule next month facing UC Riverside in their Big West opener on February 11th before heading to Arizona for matches against Northern Arizona and Grand Canyon.
Singles results included wins for Visaya (UH), Dzhenev (UH), Mueller (UH), as well as victories for Portland’s Garcia, Fernando, and Manhas. In doubles play, Maeda/Visaya (UH) and Mueller/Dzhenev (UH) earned points for Hawai’i while Keremedchiev/Fernando (UP) claimed one for Portland.
