MISSOULA, Mont. – Idaho men's tennis picked up a 5-2 road win over Montana on Friday afternoon at the Peak Racquet Club. The Vandals won their sixth match out of their last seven and improved to 10-7 overall (3-1 BSC).

After finding themselves down 1-0 when Montana won the doubles point, UI charged back in singles action winning on five of six courts to seal a 5-2 result.

The Grizzlies took a 1-0 lead with wins on courts two and three in doubles. Francisco Gay and Taiyo Kurata fell 6-2 at No. 2 to Moritz Stoeger and George Russell while Bruno Casino and Alex Asenov surrendered a 6-4 loss at No. 3.

Francisco Bascon got the Vandals started in singles play with a win in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4 over Gustav Theilgaard at No. 1. Bascon moves to an impressive 14-3 on court one and extends his match win streak to nine in a row. Shortly after, Gay was victorious on court two with a 7-6 (7-4), 6-0 win over Stoeger to give the Vandals a 2-1 lead over the Grizzlies.

The Vandals added to their lead after Casino won in three sets over Fernando Perez, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. The Grizzlies would add their second point of the day after earning a straight-set win at the No. 5 position.

Idaho won the final two matches on their way to a road victory. Matteo Masala came from behind to clinch the match for Idaho and post his second conference singles win after earning a 6-7 (8-10), 6-2, 6-2 victory over Tom Bittner. Kurata wrapped up match play with a three-set victory at No. 6. After dropping the first set 7-5, he fought back with a 7-6 (7-3) win in the second set and a 10-1 result in the final frame.

Up Next
The Vandals make their final regular season road trip next week to face conference foe Sacramento State. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.

Idaho 5, Montana 2

Singles competition
1. Francisco Bascon (IDAHO) def. THEILGAARD, Gustav (UM) 6-4, 6-4
2. Francisco Gay (IDAHO) def. STOEGER, Moritz (UM) 7-6 (7-4), 6-0
3. Bruno Casino (IDAHO) def. PEREZ, Fernando (UM) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
4. Matteo Masala (IDAHO) def. BITTNER, Tom (UM) 6-7 (8-10), 6-2, 6-2
5. RUSSELL, George (UM) def. Mario Duron (IDAHO) 7-6 (7-1), 6-3
6. Taiyo Kurata (IDAHO) def. WIGER-NORDAS, B. (UM) 5-7, 7-6 (7-3), 1-0 (10-1)

Doubles competition
1. MARTIN, Guillermo/PEREZ, Fernando (UM) vs. Francisco Bascon/Matteo Masala (IDAHO) 3-4, unfinished
2. STOEGER, Moritz/RUSSELL, George (UM) def. Francisco Gay/Taiyo Kurata (IDAHO) 6-2
3. THEILGAARD, Gustav/BITTNER, Tom (UM) def. Bruno Casino/Alex Asenov (IDAHO) 6-4

Match Notes:
Idaho 10-7, 3-1 BSC
Montana 9-9, 1-4 BSC
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (1,2,3,4,5,6)

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