Idaho’s men’s tennis team continues the fall season in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Mountain Regionals Wednesday through Sunday at UNLV in Las Vegas. Five Idaho players will compete in the third tournament of fall.The Vandals come off a successful weekend at the Dar Walters Fall Classic in Boise.
Idaho combined for 19 total wins against players also attending ITA.
Sophomore Lucas Coutinho faces Ryland McDermott of Boise State in the first round. In the Dar Walters Fall Classic, Coutinho went 5-0 in the consolation bracket after losing his first match. He is 7-3 on the season.
McDermott, of Boise State, specializes in doubles during the Dar Walters tournament.
Freshman Esteban Santibanez will compete against UNLV’s Kevin Chau. This will be Santibanez’s first official singles match of his collegiate career. He previously played doubles with Coutinho, and the pair went 2-1.
Junior Mark Kovacs faces Brigham-Young’s Sam Tullis in the No. 82 spot. Kovacs went 1-1 in his previous tournament, but excelled in doubles with freshman Carlos Longhi Neto.
Longhi Neto will play against Stefan Cooper from Weber State. Longhi Neto had the most successful run in Boise for Idaho. He went undefeated in the B draw and won five matches. Cooper is a junior for the Wildcats and went 1-1 in his last competition.
Junior Felipe Fonesca will compete in slot 124 against Norther Colorado’s Kyle Pease. Fonesca ranks seventeenth overall, tied with 16 other players. Fonesca had trouble starting his season, going 1-1 in the Dar Walters tournament. His first win was decided by a tie breaker after losing the lead in the second set.
The highest ranked individual in the singles tournament is Diogo Rocha from Denver. Rocha is followed by David Micevski from Utah, Jacob Amilon UNLV, Alex Corbinov and Bart Van Leijsen from New Mexico to round out the top five.
In doubles, Idaho is sending Coutinho and Santibanez, who start in slot 59. The duo will play Egbert Weverink and Joe Wooley of Utah. Weverick and Wooley come into the tournament ranked ninth for doubles teams.
If a player wins a regional draw, they will advance to the 2016 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships.
Brandon Hill can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @brandonmtnhill