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BLACKSBURG – The 15th-ranked Virginia Tech men’s tennis team defeated ETSU, 4-1 in the opening round of the 2015 NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center in Blacksburg, Virginia. The Hokies advance to the second round to face 18th-ranked South Florida at 1 p.m. tomorrow.

“It was a great match today,” said head coach Jim Thompson. “ETSU has great program and we knew that going in. It was a long match and a lot closer than the score probably indicated. I was really proud of our guys and the way they fought. They kept battling and closed it out. Hunter [Koontz} came through, clinching it for us, but of course Andreas [Bjerrehus] and Joao [Monteiro] also had big wins. I was really proud of all the guys today and the way they kept powering through. Hokie Nation really turned out in full support for our team today; it was an unbelievable crowd. We hope to see everyone out again tomorrow.”

Virginia Tech (20-4) got off to a strong start, winning the doubles point to kick things off. ETSU (17-8) won the first finished doubles match, taking court three, but the Hokies responded with an 8-2 win in the No. 1 where 39th-ranked Andreas Bjerrehus and Hunter Koontz defeated David Biosca and Rogerio Ribeiro.

The Hokies clinched the point with Joao Monteiro and Edoardo Tessaro’s win on court two with an 8-5 decision over Robert Herrera and Ismael Merino.

Tech went on top 2-0 as Monteiro, ranked 109th, took the win in the No. 3 over Diego Nunez. The two were tied up at 3-3 in the opening set before Monteiro won three straight to take it 6-3. In the second set, Monteiro led 5-0, but Nunez looked to make a run, cutting it to 5-3. Monteiro closed it out on the next point to secure it 6-3.

The Hokies’ 43rd-ranked Bjerrehus gave Tech a 3-0 advantage, defeating Ribeiro in the No. 2. After rolling to a 6-2 win in the opening set, Bjerrehus trailed 3-1 in the second before rallying to win five straight games, securing it 6-3.

ETSU got on the scoreboard in the next completed singles with Biosca winning 7-5, 6-2 over 68th-ranked Amerigo Contini on court one.

Virginia Tech clinched the team win with 105th-ranked Koontz battling to a win over Sebastian Yllera in the No. 4. Koontz won 6-1 in the opening set, but Yllera answered to take the second 6-2. The Tech player came back strong in the final set, winning it 6-2 to send the Hokies into the next round.

The Hokies advance to face 18th-ranked USF tomorrow. Match time is set for 1 p.m. at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center in Blacksburg, Va.

Singles
1. David Biosca (ETSU) def. #68 Amerigo Contini (VT) 7-5, 6-2
2. #43 Andreas Bjerrehus (VT) def. Rogerio Ribeiro (ETSU) 6-2, 6-3
3. #109 Joao Monteiro (VT) def. Diego Nunez (ETSU) 6-3, 6-3
4. #105 Hunter Koontz (VT) def. Sebastian Yllera (ETSU) 6-1, 2-6, 6-2
5. Edoardo Tessaro (VT) vs. Robert Herrera (ETSU) 7-5, 6-7(7), 0-1 dnf
6. Jai Corbett (VT) vs. Ismael Merino (ETSU) 6-7(1), 6-6 dnf
Order of finish: 3,2,1,4

Doubles
1. #39 Bjerrehus/Koontz (VT) def. Biosca/Ribeiro (ETSU) 8-2
2. Monteiro/Tessaro (VT) def. Herrera/Merino (ETSU) 8-5
3. del Pino/Nunez (ETSU) def. Contini/Corbett (VT) 8-1
Order of finish: 3,1,2

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