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COLUMBUS, Ohio - Virginia Tech battled back after dropping the doubles point to defeat No. 41 New Mexico, 4-3, in the first round of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Kick-off Weekend. Tech will face No. 1 Ohio State, a 7-0 winner over No. 64 Stetson, in Sunday’s second round at noon (eastern). The event is being played at the Ohio State Varsity Center.

Virginia Tech (1-0), ranked No. 30 in this week’s ITA national poll, lost two of three matches to drop the doubles point, but captured four of the six singles contests to claim the victory.

Trailing 1-0, the Hokies evened the match as Brandon Corace (Sr., Naples, Fla.) won his No. 5 match, 6-3, 6-2, over Carl Ho. Yoann Re (Jr., Verdun, Quebec, Canada) gave Tech a 2-1 lead with his 6-4, 6-0, victory at No. 3 against Miles Bugby. The Hokies increased the lead to 3-1 when Patrick Daciek (Fr., Severna Park, Md.) defeated Phil Anderson, 6-4, 6-3, in the No. 6 contest.

New Mexico narrowed the gap to 3-2 when 86th-ranked Graeme Kassautzki won the No. 2 match, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, against Tech’s 100th-ranked Pedro Graber (Jr., Santiago, Chile). The clinching point occurred in the No. 4 match as Luka Somen (Fr., Karlovac, Croatia) pulled out a come-from-behind, 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, win over Ben Dunbar. In the lone remaining contest, Nicolas Delgado de Robles (Sr., Madrid, Spain) lost his No. 1 match, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (5), 1-0 (10-7), to Johnny Parkes. A super-tiebreaker was utilized in lieu of a third set once the team match had been decided.

In doubles, Tech won at No. 3 as Daciek/Re easily defeated Anderson/Dunbar, 8-1, but New Mexico pulled even as Corace/Graber lost the No. 2 match to Kassautzki/Joe Wood, 8-5. With the doubles point hanging in the balance, Delgado de Robles/Somen, ranked 20th nationally, were upset in the No. 1 match, 8-5, by Bugby/Parkes.

The event features 60 teams playing in 15 regionals across the nation who will battle for the right to advance to the ITA National Team Indoor Championships at the Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago. The host team, Illinois, awaits the 15 winners, in the finals which will take place Feb. 13-16.

#30 Virginia Tech 4, #41 New Mexico 3
Singles
1. Johnny Parkes (UNM) def. Nicolas Delgado de Robles (VT) 7-6 (5), 6-7 (5), 1-0 (10-7)
2. #86 Graeme Kassautzki (UNM) def. #100 Pedro Graber (VT) 6-2, 3-6, 6-4
3. Yoann Re (VT) def. Miles Bugby (UNM) 6-4, 6-0
4. Luka Somen (VT) def. Ben Dunbar (UNM) 4-6, 6-1, 6-1
5. Brandon Corace (VT) def. Carl Ho (UNM) 6-3, 6-2
6. Patrick Daciek (VT) def. Phil Anderson (UNM) 6-4, 6-3
Finishing Order: 5, 3, 6, 2, 4*, 1

Doubles
1. Bugby/Parkes (UNM) vs. #20 Delgado de Robles/Somen (VT) 8-5
2. Kassautzki/Joe Wood (UNM) def. Corace/Graber (VT) 8-5
3. Daciek/Re (VT) def. Anderson/Dunbar (UNM) 8-1
Finishing Order: 3, 2, 1*

For updates on Virginia Tech men's tennis, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_MTennis).