Air Force men’s tennis secured a 4-2 victory over Army in a Service Academy match at the USTA National Center in Orlando, Florida, on Saturday. The win marked Army’s first loss of the season.
The Falcons began by winning the doubles point with victories at No. 1 and No. 3 positions. Phillip Deaton and Alec Fritzinger earned a 6-3 win at No. 3 doubles against Hanna and Choi, while Jack Brown and Tyler Leaird clinched the point for Air Force with a 6-2 win at No. 1 doubles over Feoli and Jung.
In singles play, Matthew Staton put Air Force ahead 2-0 by defeating Davis McDonald in straight sets (6-4, 6-0) at No. 6 singles. Army responded with a win at No. 3 singles to make it a 2-1 contest.
Langdon Tingleaf extended Air Force’s lead to 3-1 after coming back from a set down to defeat Daniel Chose at No. 5 singles (2-6, 6-0, 6-2). Army narrowed the gap to 3-2 with a victory at No. 1 singles before Deaton secured the overall team win for Air Force by rallying from behind to beat Jimin Jang in three sets (2-6, 7-6 [2], 6-1) at No. 2 singles.
Head Coach Evan Urbina commented on the team’s performance: “Obviously, this is a huge team win. We respect the Army team and coaching staff, and they brought a ton of fight and played tough tennis. The experience from our three seniors was paramount in setting the tone for the entire week. We put in a ton of work as a program to prepare, and I’m so grateful for Coach Castro and Coach Irmischer to be solid and steady in coaching through the pressure moments. Doubles was a battle! Jack and Tyler were down 0-40 in the first two games and winning those games was huge to build momentum. Phil and Alec closed out their doubles match with some great serving for their first win this season. In singles, we had good energy from the start, but found ourselves needing to turn things around after losing four first sets. Credit to the team for staying tough and building pressure. Matt was a leader with his consistent play, and Langdon has kept improving this season and kept his mental game strong throughout. Phil was incredible with his composure, and had a huge comeback to clinch after being down 6-2, 5-2. We are so grateful to the grads, parents, and fans with their support and encouragement throughout the entire match. Go Falcons!”
Air Force will next host Gardner-Webb on Friday, February 20.
The full results are as follows:
Doubles
Jack Brown/Tyler Leaird (AF) def. Matias Feoli/Jimin Jung (Army) – 6-2
AJ Moore/Langdon Tingleaf (AF) vs Jack Hanna/Daniel Choi (Army), unfinished
Phillip Deaton/Alec Fritzinger (AF) def Tucker Culpepper/Marcus Sebastian – 6-3
Singles
Jackson Armisted (Army) def Jack Brown (AF) – 3-6, 6-4, 6-3
Phillip Deaton (AF) def Jimin Jang (Army) – 2–6, 7–6(2), 6–1
Alan Ton (Army) def AJ Moore (AF) – 6–4, 6–2
Matias Feoli (Army) vs Alec Fritzinger (AF), unfinished
Langdon Tingleaf (AF) def Daniel Chose (Army) – 2–6, 6–0, 6–2
Matthew Staton (AF) def Davis McDonald (Army) – 6–4, 6–0
