Men's Tennis Falls To Utah, 4-1, at MWC Championships

Rainey posts AFA's lone victory

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April 27, 2001

The Air Force men's tennis team closed out its season Friday with a 4-1 loss to Utah in the fifth-place match at the 2001 Mountain West Conference Championships in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Utah jumped out to an early lead by winning the No. 2 and No. 3 doubles matches to earn the doubles point. Utah's Daniel Carlsson and Tyler Poulson defeated Eric Pittman and Justin Mancinelli, 8-4, to win at the No. 2 spot, while Kaisorn Chaichana and Corrie Scheepers earned an 8-6 win for the Utes at the No. 3 slot over Air Force's Kyle Rainey and Rene Ramirez. The No. 1 match was not finished.

Rainey notched Air Force's only singles victory of the day, defeating Kevin Zenger at the No. 2 spot, 6-2, 6-2. Utah played strong at the bottom of the lineup in singles, winning at the Nos. 4, 5 and 6 positions. Carlsson defeated Chris Zielinski, 6-2, 6-3, at the No. 4 position. At No. 5, it was Utah's Poulson who earned a 6-0, 6-1 win over Mancinelli, and Chaichana posted a 6-4, 6-2 win over AFA's Doug Fike at the No. 6 spot. Pittman and Ramirez were winning the No. 1 and No. 3 matches, respectively, when they were halted.

The win gave Utah a fifth-place finish, while Air Force finished sixth. The tournament will wrap up Saturday, Apr. 28 with the final matches. New Mexico and San Diego State will square off at 10:00 a.m. for third place, while the championship match will feature third-seeded UNLV and fourth-seeded BYU at 2:00 p.m.

MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS - FIFTH-PLACE MATCH

Utah 4, AIR FORCE 1

At Snowbird Canyon Racquet Club, Salt Lake City

SINGLES--

1. Eric Pittman (AFA) vs. David Mercier (Utah) Did Not Finish, 2. Kyle Rainey (AFA) def. Kevin Zenger 6-2, 6-2, 3. Rene Ramirez (AFA) vs. Corrie Scheepers (Utah) Did Not Finish, 4. Daniel Carlsson (Utah) def. Chris Zielinksi 6-2, 6-3, 5. Tyler Poulson (Utah) def. Justin Mancinelli 6-0, 6-1, 6. Kaichorn Chaichana (Utah) def. Doug Fike 6-4, 6-2

DOUBLES--

1. C. Zielinski/Greg Zielinski (AFA) vs. Mercier/Zenger (Utah) Did Not Finish, 2. Carlsson/Poulson (Utah) def. Pittman/Mancinelli 8-4, 3. Scheepers/Chaichana (Utah) def. Ramirez/Rainey 8-6