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BOISE, Idaho – The Virginia Tech men’s tennis team, ranked 46th in the country, nearly upset 19th-ranked Boise State in a thrilling 4-3 match that saw four of the six singles matches go to a third set at the Appleton Tennis Center in Boise, Id.

Boise State (13-3, 1-0 MWC) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead by grabbing the doubles point. In the No. 3 doubles match, Toby Mitchell and Nathan Sereke earned the first Bronco victory of the match with an 8-4 win over Tech’s Amerigo Contini and Florian Nicoud. The Broncos’ duo of Andy Bettles and Thomas Tenreiro clinched the point, defeating Jai Corbett and Joao Monteiro 8-4 in No. 2 doubles.

Virginia Tech’s (8-5, 1-1 ACC) Andreas Bjerrehus and Hunter Koontz won the No. 1 doubles match, edging Boise State’s Brendan McClain and Garrett Patton 8-7 (7-3).

The Hokies evened the match at 1-1 in No. 4 singles, where Monteiro earned a victory over Patton in straight sets 6-3, 6-3.

The Broncos’ Tenreiro pushed Boise State back in front by topping Bjerrehus 7-5, 6-1 in No. 3 singles. Boise State’s Sereke extended the lead to 3-1 with a three-set victory over Koontz. Sereke won the first set 6-4, before Koontz grabbed the second set 6-3. Sereke sealed the win with a 6-4 win in the third set.

In the No. 5 singles match, Boise State’s McClain defeated Tech’s Aaron Gomez 7-6 (7-0), 3-6, 6-3 to clinch the match for the Broncos.

The Hokies narrowed the margin to 4-3 with wins in the No. 6 and No. 1 singles matches. In No. 6 singles, Nicoud topped the Broncos’ Brian Foley 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 6-3.

In the No. 1 match, the Hokies’ Contini, ranked 24th in the nation in singles, came from behind to defeat 60th-ranked Bettles in three sets. Bettles won the first set 6-3. Contini grabbed the second 6-2 before winning the third 7-5. The win was Contini’s fifth win over a ranked opponent this season.

Virginia Tech will return to the court for a conference match at Duke on Friday, March 21 in Durham, N.C.

Singles
1. #24 Amerigo Contini (VT) def. #60 Andy Bettles (BSU) 3-6, 6-2, 7-5
2. Nathan Sereke (BSU) def. Hunter Koontz (VT) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
3. Thomas Tenreiro (BSU) def. Andreas Bjerrehus (VT) 7-5, 6-1
4. Joao Monteiro (VT) def. Garrett Patton (BSU) 6-3, 6-3
5. Brendan McClain (BSU) def. Aaron Gomez (VT) 7-6 (7-0), 3-6, 6-3
6. Florian Nicoud (VT) def. Brian Foley (BSU) 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 6-3
Order of Finish: 4,3,2,5*,6,1

Doubles
1. Andreas Bjerrehus/Hunter Koontz (VT) def. Brendan McClain/Garrett Patton (BSU) 8-7 (7-3)
2. Andy Bettles/Thomas Tenreiro (BSU) def. Jai Corbett/Joao Monteiro (VT) 8-4
3. Toby Mitchell/Nathan Sereke (BSU) def. Amerigo Contini/Florian Nicoud (VT) 8-4
Order of Finish: 3,2*,1

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