ABILENE, Texas—Idaho men's tennis opened its first of two matches this weekend with a 4-3 win over Georgia Southern on Saturday. The win moves Idaho to 7-2 on the season.

All eyes turned to the No. 2 court to decide the winner. The Vandals got out to a 3-0 lead, but Georgia Southern scored three straight singles wins to tie the score at 3. Junior Felipe Fonseca got down early, 6-3, in the deciding match. He would edge GSU's Eddie Landin, 7-5, to draw back even. Fonseca closed strong with a 6-1 third-set win, clinching the match for Idaho.

Idaho opened with the day's first point. Esteban Santibanez and Lucas Coutinho put together a 6-2 win at No. 2 doubles. Mark Kovacs and Carlos Longhi Neto secured the doubles points with a 7-5 win at No. 1.

Kovacs and Santibanez won the first two singles matches, boosting Idaho to its 3-0 lead. Kovacs went 6-2, 6-3 at No. 1 over GSU's JC Alcala. Santibanez controlled play at No. 3 with a 6-3, 6-3 win.

Idaho returns to action tomorrow against Abilene Christina. The Vandals will then get back into Big Sky play, traveling to Southern Utah on Mar. 14.

Singles

1. Kovacs, Mark (UI) def. Alcala, JC (GSU) 6-2, 6-3

2. Fonseca, Felipe (UI) def. Landin, Eddie (GSU) 3-6, 7-5, 6-1

3. Di Aloy, Stefano (GSU) def. Longhi Neto, Carlos (UI) 1-6, 6-4, 6-3

4. Suarez, Santiago (GSU) def. Coutinho,Lucas (UI) 3-6, 6-2, 6-3

5. Santibanez, Esteban (UI) def. Amari, Artemi (GSU) 6-3, 6-3

6. Finkenstein, Diego (GSU) def. Scarpelli, Guilherme (UI) 6-4, 7-5

Doubles

1. Kovacs, Mark/Longhi Neto, Carlos (UI) def. Kerrigan, Christian/Finkenstein, Diego (GSU) 7-5

2. Santibanez, Esteban/Coutinho,Lucas (UI) def. Amari, Artemi/Di Aloy, Stefano (GSU) 6-2

3. Alcala, JC/Suarez, Santiago (GSU) def. Fonseca, Felipe/Scarpelli, Guilherme (UI) 6-2

Match Notes

Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (1,5,6,3,4,2)