After a dramatic match on Friday that resulted in a loss, Sunday brought the same result with a fraction of the theatre.
Tennessee men’s tennis was outclassed against visiting Oklahoma, 4-1, at Barksdale Tennis Stadium on Sunday. Little went right for the Vols (6-8, 0-4), while the Sooners (10-3, 2-2) seemed to have all the answers.
The Vols found themselves in a familiar situation after the doubles session. Piotr Siekanowicz and Shion Itsusaki again found themselves in a double-break disadvantage. This time, they were finished off quickly by Alejandro Melero and Hank Trondson, losing 6-1.
“Just mental errors, unforced errors,” associate head coach Matt Lucas said. “Nothing special that they did, just kind of ineptitude on our part, to be honest.”
On Court 3, redshirt Woodson McMillin made his debut alongside Jan Kobierski, and the rookie looked quite in place. He and the veteran worked well together and tried to energize themselves and the crowd, making good reads and displaying good chemistry.
“Good to see (McMillin) get out there,” Lucas said. “He had dealt with a wrist injury, so he hadn’t really been around for a couple months, so it was good to see him get out there, and it looked like he kinda picked up where he left off in the fall because he was playing some good doubles in the fall.”
They kept close to their opponents, Orel Kimhi and Johan Rodriguez, until the match was suspended.
The Sooners closed out the doubles point on Court 1 after Luis Alvarez and Bruno Nhavene clinched against Dragos Cazacu and Boruch Skierkier, 6-3. The Vols held their own for much of the match, but Oklahoma’s tandem played too well and delivered the goods for the visitors.
Having dropped their sixth straight doubles session, the Vols again needed a rally in singles, but this time there was little magic.
Oklahoma took the opening set on the top four courts, while the Vols scored first-set wins on the outer courts. Perhaps the most noticeable difference was how much better the Sooners looked on the top courts, while the Vols struggled to keep up.
The first point of the session was claimed by Oscar Lacides, who was in complete command against Jose Garcia on Court 2. The Parisian looked a step ahead the whole way and cruised to a 6-2, 6-2 win. Shortly thereafter, Oklahoma found itself on the brink.
Alejandro Moreno could not piece together anything against Luis Alvarez. Tennessee’s No. 1 looked thoroughly frustrated at his own play, frequently making errors and unable to sustain the flashes of good play he brought. He was dispatched in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3.
At Court 5, Skierkier put together a dominant performance against Asahi Harazaki, bruising and bullying his opponent around with his forehand. He picked up the Vols’ lone point with a comprehensive 6-1, 6-1 win.
“Boruch is starting to find it, a little bit,” Lucas said. “He’s really bought into what this program is about.”
Just moments later, Oklahoma would clinch on Court 4, as Kobierski’s crafty style was neutralized by Rodriguez, who clinched the deal with a 6-3, 6-2 victory.
The loss was the first of two matches the Vols were set to play on Sunday, with a tilt against Belmont set to come in the late afternoon.
“We’ll switch up doubles pairings again, we’re still grasping, trying to figure out who fits together, who meshes, chemistry, game styles, all those things,” Lucas said. “Singles, we’ll put out six guys that really want to play for the University of Tennessee, that really, really understand what it means to be a Volunteer. We’ll go out, we’ll battle, then we’ll see what happens.”
