Strong play from senior Aidan Carrazedo in both singles and doubles helped BYU defeat Boise State, 4-2, at the Eagle Tennis Center on Saturday.
“After losing a tough rivalry match at home on Thursday and traveling to play another tough regional rivalry match on Saturday in Boise, coming up with a win was an incredible achievement,” BYU head coach Brad Pearce said. “Of all the wins I’ve had as a coach, I’m as proud of this win as any. I’m proud of our guys' resilience, mental toughness and physical tenacity. This match will be a turning point in building their confidence.”
In doubles play, Boise State (2-7) struck first as Pedro Platzeck and Brian Tran defeated brother duo John Pearce and Matthew Pearce at the No. 2 slot. BYU (6-4) fought back as seniors Jacob Sullivan and Jeremy Bourgeois answered with a 7-6(3) victory over New Zealand duo Kyle Butters and Jack Heslin at first doubles. Aidan Carrazedo and Sam Tullis teamed up to clinch the doubles point over Morgan Stone and Greg Wischer with a 7-6(3) win of their own.
Building on energy from doubles, BYU quickly logged two straight-set victories in singles as Tullis defeated Stone followed by a win from Matthew Pearce over Platzeck. Not ready to hand the match to the Cougars, the Broncos’ Tran, from Australia, outlasted fellow countryman Bourgeois, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, before Boise State recorded another win as Keaton Cullimore fell to Butters in a close 7-6(3), 7-5 match at No. 1 singles.
With the Cougars hanging on to a 3-2 advantage, Carrazedo recorded his second victory of the day and clinched the match for BYU with a comeback 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 win over Wischer at No. 6 singles.
The Cougars return home to face New Mexico on Friday, Feb. 17, at 4 p.m. MST, before opening conference play on Saturday, Feb. 18, against San Francisco at 5:30 p.m. Both matches will be held at the BYU indoor tennis courts.
Sydney Jorgensen is the men's tennis SID at Brigham Young University. Contact her at tennis_sid@byu.edu