Huskers Open 2024 with Two Sweeps

Lincoln, Neb. - The Nebraska men’s tennis team opened the spring season with two-straight sweeps as NU defeated North Dakota and Creighton, 7-0, on Saturday afternoon. 

NU took on North Dakota first, to start the doubleheader day. The No. 3 Nebraska doubles team of Shunya Maruyama and Nikolay Sysoev had a dominant match over the Fighting Hawks’ Fede Fiorda and Christos Alex. Senior Maruyama and Husker newcomer Sysoev finished their match first for the Huskers with a clean 6-0 win. Next to finish was No. 1 Big Red doubles duo Nic Wiedenhorn and Anton Shepp against North Dakota’s Kevin Kuoa and Ethan Terry. Wiedenhorn and Shepp competed together in the fall and picked up right where they left off, securing another 6-0 Husker win and clinching the doubles point for the Big Red. Calvin Mueller and Lars Johann competed in the No. 2 doubles slot and took on Fighting Hawks’ Jayho Hong and Jerall Yasin. Mueller and Johann took an early 4-0 lead, dropped two to North Dakota, and bounced back to finish the match with a 6-2 mark.

With the doubles swept and the 1-0 overall lead, Sysoev locked up the first singles point for the Huskers with a dominant 6-1, 6-1 win in the No. 6 slot against North Dakota’s Alex. Next to finish was Maruyama at No. 4 up against Hong. Maruyama had a clean first set with a 6-0 game score. In the second set, Maruyama took an early lead and fought to take the second set, 6-2. At No. 2, Shepp took down Yasin 6-2, 6-3. Johann played the No. 3 slot and took his first set with a 6-3 win. Up 5-4 in the second set, the sophomore drilled an ace to seal the game, set, match and Husker win. At No. 5, Christiansen defeated Fiorda 6-3, 6-1. In the No. 1 spot, Mueller took on Kuoa, going three sets but coming out on top, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3.

The 7-0 win for NU was the first meeting between the Huskers and Fighting Hawks. 

The Big Red faced Creighton next, the 53rd meeting in the Huskers versus Bluejays series. Wiedenhorn and Shepp got to work quickly as they defeated Creighton’s Matthew Lanahan and Kirtan Patel in the No. 1 spot, 6-3. Mueller and Johann clinched the doubles point for the Huskers with a 6-3 victory on Court Two, and Maruyama and Sysoev’s match in the No. 3 doubles slot went unfinished. 

With the 1-0 lead going into singles play, the Huskers took the first set on each court. Shepp was the first to finish, and made the match 2-0 with his 6-3, 6-3 victory on Court Two over Patel. Wiedenhorn then defeated Daijima on Court Six, 6-4, 6-1, while Leo Linquet bested Shin Inoue on Court Five, 6-2, 6-3. Maruyama stretched the score to 5-0 with his 6-2, 6-4 win on Court Four over Alejandro Gandini. Mueller was tied with Lanahan on Court One with one set apiece, but topped the Bluejay in the third set tiebreak 12-10, for the 6-4, 4-6, 1-0 [12-10] victory. To close out the match and secure the 7-0 sweep, Johann defeated Zachary Kuo on Court Three, 6-1, 6-7 (3), [10-6].

Next up, the Huskers host another doubleheader on Sunday, Jan. 21. The Big Red will take on Omaha at 11 a.m. (CT) and Creighton at 5 p.m. (CT). The matches will be held at the Sid and Hazel Dillon Tennis Center and parking and admission are free. The rest of the 2023-24 Nebraska Men’s Tennis Schedule can be found here.

Nebraska 7, North Dakota 0

Singles competition
1. Calvin Mueller (NEB) def. Ange-Kevin Koua (UND) 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
2. Anton Shepp (NEB) def. Jerall Yasin (UND) 6-2, 6-3
3. Lars Johann (NEB) def. Ethan Terry (UND) 6-3, 6-4
4. Shunya Maruyama (NEB) def. Jayho Hong (UND) 6-0, 6-2
5. Rudi Christiansen (NEB) def. Federico Fiorda (UND) 6-3, 6-1
6. Nikolay Sysoev (NEB) def. Christos Alex (UND) 6-1, 6-1

Doubles competition
1. Nic Wiedenhorn/Anton Shepp (NEB) def. Ange-Kevin Koua/Ethan Terry (UND) 6-0
2. Calvin Mueller/Lars Johann (NEB) def. Jayho Hong/Jerall Yasin (UND) 6-2
3. Shunya Maruyama/Nikolay Sysoev (NEB) def. Federico Fiorda/Christos Alex (UND) 6-0

Nebraska 7, Creighton 0

Singles competition
1. Calvin Mueller (NEB) def. Matthew Lanahan (CU) 6-4, 4-6, 1-0 (12-10)
2. Anton Shepp (NEB) def. Kirtan Patel (CU) 6-3, 6-3
3. Lars Johann (NEB) def. Zachary Kuo (CU) 6-1, 6-7 (3-7), 1-0 (10-6)
4. Shunya Maruyama (NEB) def. Alejandro Gandini (CU) 6-2, 6-4
5. Leo Linquet (NEB) def. Shin Inoue (CU) 6-2, 6-3
6. Nic Wiedenhorn (NEB) def. Yuma Daijima (CU) 6-4, 6-1

Doubles competition
1. Nic Wiedenhorn/Anton Shepp (NEB) def. Matthew Lanahan/Kirtan Patel (CU) 6-3
2. Calvin Mueller/Lars Johann (NEB) def. Shin Inoue/Zachary Kuo (CU) 6-3
3. Shunya Maruyama/Nikolay Sysoev (NEB) vs. Alejandro Gandini/Yuma Daijima (CU) 4-4, unfinished