Husker Men's Tennis Falls To No. 21 Baylor, 6-1

Lincoln -- The Nebraska men's tennis team dropped its second straight dual meet and third overall this season, as the Huskers fell to No. 21 Baylor, 6-1, in a hard-fought match here Friday at the Woods Tennis Center.

Despite the final outcome, the Huskers (5-3) worked hard throughout the match and showed promise for the near future. "I was disappointed we lost, because any loss is disappointing,"
said Nebraska head men's tennis coach Kerry McDermott. "We battled hard and I think it shows we are on the right track. We need to get one good win over a team like this to improve our confidence. Even so, we were right with them down to the wire."

Baylor (3-2) topped Nebraska in all three doubles matches in dramatic fashion. The No. 1 doubles tandem of Lance Mills and Jorge Abos Sanchez pushed BU's Mark Williams and Reiner Neurohr to the limit, as the Bears took a 9-8 victory. BU kept the pressure on at Nos. 2 and 3 doubles, as well, as NU's Adnan Hadzialic and Fungai Tongoona fell to Csongor Bibza and Cary Ross, 8-6, at the No. 2 spot while Ryan Haith and Kai Rieke dropped an 8-5 decision to BU's Zoltan Papp and Nathan McGregor at the No. 3 doubles slot.

In the singles matches, Nebraska picked up its only point of the day, as Mills, playing at the No. 1 singles slot for the third straight match, defeated Bibza, 7-6, 5-7, 6-4. At No. 2 singles, Williams barely outlasted NU's Abos Sanchez, defeating the senior 3-6, 7-6, 6-4, while Neurohr picked up the decision at No. 3 singles over Hadzialic, 7-5, 7-5.

Continuing the strong showing against a ranked team, NU's Rieke came up just short in a 6-4, 6-2 loss at the No. 4 slot, while Haith was barely outdone by Matias Marin, 7-6, 7-5. Freshman Patrick Kennedy got the nod at No. 6 singles for the Huskers, where he fell 6-1, 6-4 to Ross.

The Huskers were scheduled to play at San Diego on Saturday and at San Diego State on Sunday of this weekend, however, the matches were both moved back. The match against San Diego, which was moved because of poor travel conditions Friday for the Huskers, is tentatively scheduled for March 24, while the San Diego State matchup has been moved back to its original date of March 25.

The next match on the schedule for NU is Saturday, March 3 at Oklahoma State. The Huskers and Cowboys will start the match at 1 p.m in Stillwater, Okla.

Nebraska vs. No. 21 Baylor (Men's Tennis Dual Meet)
Singles

1. Lance Mills (NU) def. Csongor Bibza (BU),	7-6, 5-7, 6-4
2. Mark Williams (BU) def. Jorge Abos Sanchez (NU),	3-6, 7-6, 6-4
3. Reiner Neurohr (BU) def. Adnan Hadzialic (NU),	7-5, 7-5
4. Zoltan Papp (BU) def. Kai Rieke (NU),	6-4, 6-2
5. Matias Marin (BU) def. Ryan Haith (NU),	7-6, 7-5
6. Cory Ross (BU) def. Patrick Kennedy (NU),	6-1, 6-4

Doubles

1. Williams/Neurohr (BU) def. Abos Sanchez/Mills (NU),	9-8
2. Bibza/Ross (BU) def. Hadzialic/Tongoona (NU),	8-6
3. Papp/Nathan McGregor (BU) def. Rieke/Haith (NU),	8-5

Final Score
6-1 Baylor