Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's tennis team started off Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play in a big way as the Bulldogs beat West Michigan rival Grand Valley State by a 6-3 score in a late night match on Wednesday (Feb. 25) at the Ramblewood Tennis & Health Club in Grandville.
The Bulldogs fought back from a 2-1 deficit following the doubles round to capture the win in a match that went into the early morning hours on Thursday due to the late start. The Bulldogs took the second thru sixth singles positions en route to the triumph.
In doubles action, the Bulldog tandem of Tyler Bridges and Zachary Grabovic scored an 8-6 victory at the third flight. However, the Lakers won the first two flights, including a tiebreaker at first doubles in close fashion.
GVSU scored its lone win in singles competition at first singles where Francis Bertrand upset the nation's 36th-ranked competitor in Bulldog senior Laurent Galarneau. However, the Bulldogs made up the difference and then some as they swept the bottom five singles positions to record the victory.
Both Bridges and Grabovic were double winners in the match as they pulled out wins at four and five singles, respectively, to go along with their doubles victory. In addition, FSU received wins from Vasil Surduk at two singles, Roger Hernandez Pena at the third flight and Simon Levy at the sixth position.
With the win, the Bulldogs improved to 3-1 overall and are now 1-0 in the GLIAC this season. GVSU fell to 2-1 on the year and 0-1 in league play. FSU is currently ranked eighth in the NCAA-II Midwest Region.
The Bulldogs return home to host a pair of non-league opponents at the FSU Racquet and Fitness Center this weekend. FSU faces Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) on Friday (Feb. 27) at 1 p.m. (ET) before hosting Indianapolis on Saturday (Feb. 28) starting at 9 a.m. (ET).
Below are the complete match results:
Ferris State 6, Grand Valley State 3
Feb 25, 2015 at Grandville, Mich. (Ramblewood Tennis & Health Club)
| Singles competition |
| 1. Francis Bertrand (GV-M) def. #36 Laurent Galarneau (FS) 6-2, 6-2 |
| 2. Vasil Surduk (FS) def. Zach Phillips (GV-M) 7-6 (7-5), 5-7, 6-3 |
| 3. Roger Hernandez-Pena (FS) def. A. van de Steenoven (GV-M) 6-3, 7-5 |
| 4. Tyler Bridges (FS) def. Jack Heiniger (GV-M) 6-2, 6-2 |
| 5. Zachary Grabovic (FS) def. Bryan Hodges (GV-M) 1-6, 6-2, 6-2 |
| 6. Simon Levy (FS) def. Andrew Bole (GV-M) 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 |
| Doubles competition |
| 1. Francis Bertrand/Bryan Hodges (GV-M) def. Laurent Galarneau/Roger Hernandez-Pena (FS) 9-8 |
| 2. Zach Phillips/A. van de Steenoven (GV-M) def. Vasil Surduk/Aaron Dial (FS) 8-5 |
| 3. Tyler Bridges/Zachary Grabovic (FS) def. Quinn Sylow/Jack Heiniger (GV-M) 8-6 |
