The San Marcos boys tennis team earned a narrow 10-8 home victory over Channel League rival Dos Pueblos on Tuesday in both teams’ league opener.
Kento Perera improved to 14-0 on the year for San Marcos (3-2, 1-0) after sweeping three sets 6-2, 6-0, 6-0, and Dominik Stefanov and Daniel Newton each went 2-1 in singles play. The Royals held a 7-2 advantage in singles competition. Both of Dos Pueblos’ singles wins came from Miles Baldwin.
“Kento, Dom, and Daniel were stellar today,” San Marcos coach Jarrod Bradley said. “Tactically, they played their strengths, put pressure on their opponents from the baseline, and won easy points at the net.”
In doubles, the Chargers (3-2, 0-1) mounted a furious rally and nearly completed the comeback.
The Chargers team of Vince Villano and Andrew DeAlba took on San Marcos’ Bryan Shott and Alex Stefanov in a crucial set that could have tied the match for Dos Pueblos. Shott and Stefanov managed a 6-2 victory to quell any shot at a tie.
“Bryan and Alex sealed the match for us with their final-round win,” said Bradley. “Bryan’s forehand and Alex’s volley were on point, putting pressure on DP the entire set.”
“The third round consisted of nail biters,” DP coach Liz Frech said. “Unfortunately, we could not convert two critical sets. We know we have much work to do before our second match up.”
In singles, Miles Baldwin gave us two 6-0 sets. In doubles, the duos of Kellen Roberts/Ryan Rennick, Ryan and Christian Hodosy, and Villano/DeAlba took two sets each. “The set to watch was the close win of Villano/DeAlba over Coulson/Gill. Lots of fire and power erupted on that court,” said Frech.
The Royals take on other rival Santa Barbara next Tuesday while the Chargers travel north to face Arroyo Grande on Friday.
— Noozhawk sports reporter Christian Eckert can be reached at ceckert@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @NoozhawkSports and @noozhawk. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.