TEMPE, Ariz. — Taking down its second consecutive ranked opponent, the #25 Pepperdine men's tennis team outlasted #24 Arizona State with a 4-3 road win on Thursday night.
Three was the magic number for the Waves (5-2, 1-0 West Coast Conference). Trailing 3-1 to the #24 Sun Devils (3-3), the middle of Pepperdine's lineup came through with three, three-set victories capped off by Linus Carlsson Halldin clinching the match with his 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win over Constantinos Koshis on court three.
With the win, Pepperdine has notched multiple top-25 wins in three different seasons under head coach Adam Schaechterle (the others were in 2021 and 2022).
Despite dropping the doubles point, the Waves began their comeback attempt in singles play with a straight-set win from Lasse Poertner at the fifth position. The German freshman broke Matic Dimic early in the first set en route to winning 6-4, then he got off the court first by completing his 6-4, 6-4 win — his second of the spring.
Although the Sun Devils responded with straight-set wins on courts six and one, the Waves made their push in the middle of the lineup. All-American #32 Maxi Homberg rallied with a lopsided 6-1 second-set win to push his match to a third set. He eventually prevailed with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 win that pulled Pepperdine within one of the Sun Devils.
This left Aleksa Pisaric and Carlsson Halldin to finish the job. With both Waves in their third sets, Pepperdine made its knockout blow. On court four, Pisaric broke Nicola Cigna in the ninth game for a 5-4 lead. Around the same time, Carlsson Halldin held on deuce point for a 4-1 lead after going up 3-0 in the third set.
Pisaric served out the match for a 5-7, 7-2, 6-4 win over Cigna for his third-straight win, tying up the score at three. With all eyes on Carlsson Halldin on court three, the senior captain held serve in the final game, clinching the match with his 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win over Constantinos Koshis.
From here, the Waves head two hours south to Tucson to take on #10 Arizona on Sunday. First serve for Pepperdine's third-straight match against a ranked opponent is at 11 a.m. PT.
RESULTS
Singles
1. Bor Artnak (ASU) def. Edward Winter (PEPP) 7-6 (8-6), 6-4
2. #32 Maxi Homberg (PEPP) def. Mathis Bondaz (ASU) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
3. Linus Carlsson Halldin (PEPP) def. Constantinos Koshis (ASU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
4. Aleksa Pisaric (PEPP) def. Nicola Cigna (ASU) 5-7, 6-2, 6-4
5. Lasse Poertner (PEPP) def. Matic Dimic (ASU) 6-4, 6-4
6. Roi Ginat (ASU) def. David Fix (PEPP) 6-2, 6-4
Order of finish: 5,6,1,2,4,3*
Doubles
1. #55 Bor Artnak/Matic Dimic (ASU) def. Edward Winter/Hugh Winter (PEPP) 6-1
2. Tanner Povey/Daniel Phillips (ASU) def. #51 Linus Carlsson Halldin/Maxi Homberg (PEPP) 6-3
3. Constantinos Koshis/Nicola Cigna (ASU) vs. Aleksa Pisaric/Lasse Poertner (PEPP) 5-4, unfinished
Order of finish: 1,2*
