Urbana Tennis Royale, Tigers lose season opener to the Illineks

URBANA - Aryan Sachdev is off to a great start on the hardcourt this spring. The Urbana University senior picked up his fifth win of the season after defeating Urbana's Xander Ashley 6-1, 6-1, on the #1 singles court on Wednesday. In fact, the Illineks took all six singles matches to prevail 8-1 over the Tigers.

It wasn't all bad for Ashley, who later partnered with teammate Luke Pankau to win their match at #3 singles.

Meanwhile, on doubles court #2, Urbana's Santi Lleras and Karl Bonita pushed their match against Uni's Robert Gao and Ian Pan to a third-set tiebreak. Dropping the first set 7-5, Gao/Pan rallied back strong to take the second 6-1. Unable to match the firepower from the University High opponents, Lleras/Bonita gave a valiant effort as the sun dipped below the horizon, losing 10-4 under the lights.

Uni plays their next home match April 11 against Paris at Atkins Tennis Center starting at 4:30 p.m. The Tigers host Matton tomorrow at Blair Park at 2 p.m.

Photo Gallery

BOX SCORE ~

Singles:
No. 1 - Aryan Sachdev, U-High def. Xander Ashley, Urbana, 6-1, 6-1
No. 2 - Mason Miao, U-High def. Joe Solava, Urbana, 6-2, 6-2
No. 3 - Taehan Lee, U-High def. Ian Peters, Urbana, 6-0, 7-5
No. 4 - Swapnil Kumar, U-High def. Samuel Sherwood, Urbana, 6-0, 6-0
No. 5 - Kyle Fan, U-High def. Jack Perry, Urbana, 6-0, 6-1
No. 6 - Shreyas Singh, U-High def. Santi Lleras, Urbana, 6-3, 5-7, 10-2

Doubles:
No. 1 - Taehan Lee/Swapnil Kumar, U-High def. Joe Solava/Ian Peters, Urbana, 6-2, 6-1
No. 2 - Robert Gao/Ian Pan, U-High def. Santi Lleras/Karl Bonita, Urbana, 5-7, 6-1, 10-4
No. 3 - Xander Ashley/Luke Pankau, Urbana def. David Risinger/Collins Rosch, U-High, 7-5, 6-1

FINAL: University High 8 - Urbana 1

Ashley/Pankau pick up win doubles for Urbana at home tennis match

Urbana's Xander Ashley (left) and partner Luke Pankau congratulate their opponents after their doubles match on Wednesday against U-High's David Risinger and Collins Rosch. Despite securing their win at #3 doubles, the Tigers fell 8-1 to the visiting Illineks. Urbana is back in action at Blair Park for another home match, hosting Mattoon starting at 2 p.m. on Friday. Ashley and Pankau prevailed after a 7-5 first-set nailbiter, taking the second set six games to one.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

Related tennis stories
• • • • •

CU is a great place for tennis; 5 really good reasons why you want play, too

Playing tennis, like several other active sports, is a worthwhile activity for activating the brain and keeping neural networks functioning longer because it requires a combination of tactical thinking, creativity, coordination, and agility. One benefit to hitting the courts on the reg is ...

See more . . .

Your guide to playing outdoor tennis in the Midwest this winter

Playing tennis when the temperatures dip below the 50º mark is not nearly as bad as you might think. Once you start focusing on hitting the ball and winning points, and your body ...

See more . . .

6 questions with Jason Zumwalt

CHAMPAIGN - We caught up with the Centennial head coach Jason Zumwalt over spring break to get the scoop on the upcoming boys' tennis season. Zumwalt, a veteran player, competitor, and ...

See more . . .