The UIS men's tennis team competed at the Dwight Davis Open at Forest Park in St. Louis over the weekend, highlighted by singles consolation titles from Lukas Pieringer and Miran Todorovic.
In Flight 1 singles, Matheus Taule opened the main draw with a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Silas Pillar in the round of 16. He advanced to the quarterfinals, where he fell in a tight three-set match, 5-7, 6-3, (13-11). Colton Pazdera fell 6-1, 6-0 to Jerry Han in the opening round before competing in the consolation draw, where he was defeated 5-7, 6-3, (10-7) in the consolation quarterfinals.
In Flight 2, Antonio Ayerbe Streubel and Ben Loeffler both advanced through the opening round of the main draw. Ayerbe Streubel defeated Stephen Barker 6-0, 6-0, while Loeffler earned a 6-0, 6-1 win over Avi Patel. Both Prairie Stars fell in the quarterfinals, with Ayerbe Streubel losing 6-3, 6-3 to Nathan Tam and Loeffler falling 6-0, 6-1 to Ethan Wu.
In Flight 3, Luke Pennington advanced to the quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Liam Nance before falling 6-3, 6-2 in the next round. Juan Pablo Salazar Schiaffino fell 7-5, 6-4 to Riki Koshimizu in the opening round. He rebounded in the consolation draw with a 6-1, 6-2 quarterfinal victory over Colton Hulme before retiring in the consolation semifinals.
Pieringer also competed in Flight 3, falling 6-0, 6-3 to Liam Collins in the main draw's opening round. He advanced through the consolation quarterfinals after his opponent retired, then earned a 6-3, 6-4 semifinal victory over Jake Brinker. Pieringer capped his run with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Nance to claim the Flight 3 consolation title.
In Flight 4, Heitor Souto opened with a dominant 6-0, 6-0 win over Ben Wedemeier. He followed with a three-set quarterfinal victory over Drew Koval, winning 6-1, 3-6, (11-9), before falling 5-7, 6-2, (10-6) in the semifinals.
Todorovic fell 6-2, 6-1 to Daniel Zhu in the main draw's opening round before making a run through the consolation bracket. He won 6-1, 6-3 in the consolation quarterfinals and defeated Morgan McNeice Sainz 6-4, 6-1 in the semifinals. Todorovic capped the run with a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Wedemeier to claim the Flight 4 consolation title. Jorge Roman also entered Flight 4 but withdrew from the main draw.
In Flight 6, Kai Van-Roon retired in his quarterfinal match against Giacomo Valerga.
In Flight A doubles, Souto and Pieringer opened with an 8-2 win over Alejandro Vasquez and Vincente Da Costa. They advanced through the quarterfinals by withdrawal before falling 8-3 to Koval and Tam in the semifinals. Ayerbe Streubel and Taule also advanced past the opening round, defeating Andrea Ricart and Valerga 8-1. They fell just short in the quarterfinals, losing 8-7 (7-1) to Koval and Tam.
In Flight B doubles, Todorovic and Pazdera began with an 8-2 victory over Lias Klyachko and Vitaly Klyachko. They were then defeated 8-1 by Danny Radke and Spencer Yamamoto.
In Flight C doubles, Loeffler and Pennington defeated Silas Pillar and Reid Caruthers 8-6 before retiring in the following round.
The Prairie Stars return to competition next weekend at the ITA Regional Championships in Allendale, Mich., as the fall season continues with a quick turnaround.
