April 23, 2010
Complete Results
Springfield, Mo. - The Lewis University men's tennis team rallied from a 2-1 deficit following doubles play to earn the 5-3 victory over Missouri-St. Louis in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament Quarterfinals at Drury's Gillenwaters Tennis Complex on Friday (Apr. 23) afternoon.
"We did not play the way we wanted to in doubles, but give UMSL credit because they played well," Lewis head men's tennis coach Brett Bridel said. "We were really tested, but we persevered and pulled it out at the end."
Lewis (16-5), who has won 11 of its last 12 matches, will now face the host Panthers (12-4), who are ranked No. 2 in the latest ITA Midwest Regional rankings, in the semifinals around 6 PM.
At No. 1 doubles, Lewis' Uno Lapimaa (Tallinn, Estonia/Audentese) who was named the GLVC Player of the Year on Thursday (Apr. 22) night, paired up with sophomore Tonis Irdoja (Tallinn, Estonia/Rocca Al Mare) for the 9-8 (7-3) triumph over the Tritons' Daniel Anthony and Andreas Hammar for the Flyers' lone win. The Estonian native also extended his singles winning-streak to 23 matches with a 6-1, 7-5 victory over Hammar at No. 1.
Lewis freshman Jesse Hardacre (Racine, Wis./St. Catherine's) rallied for the 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 win over UMSL's Jamie Lawlor at No. 3 singles. Flyer juniors Lorenz Pestinger (Bad Homburg, Germany/Humboldtschule/Missouri Valley) and Michael Wojnarowski (Oak Lawn, Ill./Richards/Moraine Valley CC) clinched the victory for the Flyers with wins at No. 4 and No. 5 singles respectively.
Pestinger also came-from-behind for the 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 win over Tim Bryant at No. 4, while Wojnarowski dropped Felipe Naranjo at No. 5, 6-2, 6-4.
A Catholic university sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis offers nearly 80 undergraduate majors and programs of study, accelerated degree completion options for working adults, various aviation programs and 22 graduate programs in nine fields. The 9th largest private, not-for-profit university in Illinois is being honored for the sixth consecutive year by The Princeton Review and U.S. News & World Report. For more information please visit www.lewisu.edu.
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