OU Men's Tennis Squeaks By Middle Tennessee State

March 4, 2000

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - The University of Oklahoma men's tennis team edged No. 46 Middle Tennessee State, 4-3, in its third match of the weekend at the H.E.B. Championships in Corpus Christi, Texas. The match was held at the H.E.B Tennis Center. With the victory, the Sooners push their record to 2-1 in the tournament, and 6-4 for the season. The Blue Raiders fall to 9-5.

OU picked up two quick wins in doubles action as seniors Charlie Roberson and Rick Warren dominated MTS' Oliver Foreman and Olle Nystrom, 8-1, at the number one position. At the number two spot, senior Dusty Beard and freshman Tobias Kronlein were victorious over Daniel Klemetz and Robert Gustafsson, 8-5, to clinch the doubles point.

In singles competition, the Sooners won two tie-breakers to secure the victory. Junior Julio Martinez extended his winning streak to six-straight matches as he beat Nystrom, 6-2, 6-0. Roberson picked up a close win against Gustafsson, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10-3). In the deciding point, Kronlein fought back from a 6-1 deficit in the third set tie-breaker to defeat Mark Pellerin, 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (10-8), clinching the victory for Oklahoma and upsetting the second ranked opponent in as many days.

"Every match we've played here has been a tough one, I couldn't be prouder of my team," said Oklahoma Head Coach Paul Lockwood.

"Coming into this tournament, I knew we could play at this level but we just had to stay focused and pick up our intensity. We've been able to do that. We're really playing good tennis right now and we should get better as the season progresses," said Lockwood.

On Sunday, the Sooners will face No. 58 Tulsa in an early preview of their upcoming match on March 29. Match time is set for 8:30 a.m. at the H.E.B. Tennis Center.

OKLAHOMA, 4 vs. No. 46 Middle Tennessee State, 3
Saturday, March 4, 2000
H.E.B. Tennis Center * Corpus Christi, Texas

SINGLES

No. 1 Oliver Foreman (MTS) def. Dusty Beard (OU) 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (10-5)

No. 2 Daniel Klemetz (MTS) def. Jeremy Dunham (OU) 6-3, 6-3

No. 3 Charlie Roberson (OU) def. Robert Gustafsson (MTS) 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10-3)

No. 4 Julio Martinez (OU) def. Olle Nystrom (MTS) 6-2, 6-0

No. 5 Michael Chamberlain (MTS) def. Rick Warren (OU) 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 (10-2)

No. 6 Tobias Kronlein (OU) def. Mark Pellerin (MTS) 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (10-8)

DOUBLES

No. 1 Roberson/Warren (OU) def. Foreman/Nystrom (MTS) 8-1

No. 2 Beard/Kronlein (OU) def. Klemetz/Gustafsson (MTS) 8-5

No. 3 Matt Ogle/Chris Mitchell (OU) vs. Chamberlain/Pellerin (MTS) Susp.