Men's Tennis | 2/11/2017 7:50:00 PM

AUSTIN, Texas – St. Edward's men's tennis suffered its first loss of the season Saturday by way of a 4-3 decision against UT-Rio Grande Valley.
 
ANDRE MERCADO continued his hot streak with wins in doubles and singles. Drumwright also kept to his winning ways with a singles victory. Both Drumwright and Mercado are undefeated in singles this spring.
 
St. Edward's (5-1) matched its best start since 2006 before Saturday's loss. UTRGV improves to 2-5.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Vaqueros claimed the doubles point with quick wins at No. 2 doubles (8-3) and No. 1 doubles (8-6).
• Mercado and CHASE MOREHOUSE took their match at No. 3, but it would not count as a point under the NCAA Division I rules.
• CHARLIE SHIN tied the match with his dominant, 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 2 in singles.
• Drumwright gave St. Edward's the lead with a 6-3, 6-4 win on line six.
• Three straight wins from the Vaqueros dashed the Hilltoppers' hopes and clinched the win.

 
HILLTOPPER NOTES

• The Hilltoppers fell to UTRGV last season by one point in Edinburg, Texas.
• St. Edward's is 0-3 all-time against the Vaqueros.
• Drumwright and Mercado hold a combined singles record of 9-0.
• Mercado posted a perfect 4-0 record in two matches this week.

 
QUOTE BOARD: HEAD COACH ESTEVAM STRECKER
"You can't flirt with fate every time and expect to win every time. We keep putting ourselves behind in doubles, and then we have to dig ourselves out of a hole. Today, they were just a little too much. It was a tough loss, but not a bad loss by any stretch of the imagination. They are very good, but we need to regroup and reassess because we need to figure out how to win more doubles matches.
 
UP NEXT
St. Edward's returns home for homecoming Saturday, Feb. 18, at 1:30 p.m. against Laredo Community College at Austin Tennis Academy. Live stats will be available at GoHilltoppers.com.
 
MATCH INFORMATION
Score: UT-Rio Grande Valley 4, #24 St. Edward's 3
Records: St. Edward's (5-1), UT-Rio Grande Valley (2-5)
Clincher: Jansen – UTRGV (7-5, 6-3)
 
For the latest information on the St. Edward's University Men's Tennis team, follow us on Facebook and Twitter at @SEUMTennis, or visit us at www.GoHilltoppers.com.