NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion men’s tennis team (5-4) fell to N.C. State (7-0) by a 4-3 score on Friday afternoon at the Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center. Adam Moundir, Francois Musitelli and Javier Jover Maestre all earned singles victories.
“N.C. State is a totally different team than last year,” said ODU head coach Dominik Mueller. “Coach Spencer made them better instantly and that showed today. We were close again, but keep hurting ourselves the same way. We have to get back to basics. I know this group is willing to do that and we will.”
The Monarchs will be back in action for a double-header on Sunday Feb. 18 starting at 10:00 a.m., when they host Richmond (4-4) and then Howard (0-4) at 2:00 p.m.
Meet Richmond
This season, in their first year with new Head Coach Houston Barrick at the helm, the Spiders are off to a 4-4 start. Richmond seems to have started to find a rhythm over the past few weeks, winning three of their last four matches. Of those three wins, one was over a conference foe in St. Bonaventure by a 7-0 score. Their only loss in those four matches came at the hands of Virginia Tech who have started the season red hot (7-1). The Spiders are set to take on James Madison this Friday before traveling to Norfolk on Sunday for a match with ODU.
Meet Howard
Howard enters their 34th year under head coach Larry Strickland. Strickland is an 11-time MEAC Coach of the Year Award winner and has coached over 70 ITA Scholar All-Americans during his tenure with the team. So far this season, Strickland has the Bison’s men’s tennis team is off to an 0-4 start. They are scheduled to face Mount St. Mary’s (MD.) this Saturday before heading to ODU this Sunday for a match at 2:00p.m. EST.
RESULTS
NC State 4, Old Dominion 3
Doubles Results
- Alexis Galarneau/Tadas Babelis (NC State) def. Aziz Kijametovic/Francois Musitelli (ODU) 6-2
- Igor Saveljic/Ivan Saveljic (NC State) def. Adam Moundir/Javier Jover Maestre (ODU) 6-2
- Michael Ogden/Georgiy Malyshev (NC State) def. Vincent Schneider/Jannik Giesse (ODU) 4-5, unfinished
Order of Finish: 1, 2*
Singles Results
- #19 Alexis Galarneau (NC State) def. Aziz Kijametovic (ODU) 6-3, 6-1
- Adam Moundir (ODU) def. Igor Saveljic (NC State) 6-2, 6-3
- Tadas Babelis (NC State) def. Michael Weindl (ODU) 6-0, 6-4
- Francois Musitelli (ODU) def. Ivan Saveljic (NC State) 4-6, 7-5 1-0 (10-6)
- Georgiy Malyshev (NC State) def. Jacob Nicolussi (ODU) 7-5, 6-4
- Javier Jover Maestre (ODU) def. Robert Turzak (NC State) 5-7, 7-5, 1-0 (10-5)
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3, 5*, 4, 6
Friday’s Game Day Professor:
Dr. Joe Cosco is an associate professor of English at ODU, where he has taught courses in journalism, American literature, and American studies for more than 20 years. He is the author of the book, "Imagining Italians: The Clash of Romance and Race in American Perceptions, 1880-1910," as well as a number of scholarly articles.
Born in southern Italy, Joe grew up in New York. He earned a bachelor's in English from Dartmouth College, a master's in English Literature from Columbia University, and a doctorate in American Studies from the College of William and Mary, and also studied Anglo-Irish literature at Trinity College Dublin.
Prior to joining the ODU faculty, Joe was a staff reporter/writer for several newspapers, including The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk. His freelance articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other national publications.
On the sports front, Joe enjoys playing tennis, following ODU's athletic teams, and cheering on his New York Yankees.