Junior Federico Levi and the UNF men’s tennis team beat Georgia State University 4-3 to win its home opener Jan. 25 at the UNF Tennis Complex.

Levi defeated Georgia State’s nationally ranked Nejc Podkrajjsek, ranked 69th in the country, in the No. 1 singles match. Levi’s 6-4, 6-3 win provided a needed boost in the
match after the Ospreys fell behind early.

“I am glad Federico was able to defeat a ranked player in straight sets,” UNF head coach Igal Buberman said in a press release. “This result helps the kids understand why we put in so much time and effort into this program.”

The Panthers put the Ospreys behind 1-0 after Podkrajjsek and Martin Shishkov started with an 8-3 No.1 doubles victory over freshman Marc Misanovic and Levi.

“Doubles were a little tougher today, and I think that we could have started with more intensity,” Buberman said. “There are a few things that we are going to work on this week, but the communication between players was pretty good.”

Junior Kurt Gattiker and freshman Marcos Chiaretti kept UNF alive with an 8-4 doubles victory against Orlando Battaglia and Trenton Spinks, before GSU’s William Adeimy and Jackson Moore rallied back to even the score of GSU’s other doubles win. They defeated sophomore Graham Edgar and freshman Ronnie Sang in the No. 3 doubles slot.

The No. 2 singles position went to Shishkov, when he defeated Misanovic’ 7-5 and 6-4. Henri Mangin beat Gattiker in three sets (6-2, 4-6, 6-1) in the third singles position.

UNF pulled back in the No. 4-6 singles slots to preserve the win. No. 4 Chiaretti was victorious with a 7-5, 6-4 victory while No. 5 Edgar defeated Adeimy 6-2, 6-0. No 6 Sang’s 7-5, 6-2
victory helped seal the win.

UNF will face off against South Carolina State University at home Jan. 29. Buberman said his team is excited for the challenge that awaits them.

E-mail Matt Head at sports@unfspinnaker.com