HAVERHILL, Mass. – The Fairleigh Dickinson men's tennis team rode a strong performance in singles play on its way to defeating Merrimack, 6-1, in the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
 
The Knights (5-4, 2-0 NEC) won two of three doubles matches as well as five of the six singles points against their new conference rival, with four players winning their singles matches in straight sets. Four different Knights also earned wins in both singles and doubles play against the Warriors (5-4, 1-1 NEC).
 
The Warriors won the first doubles match, but the Knights duo of freshman Teodors Pukse and sophomore Andris Gudins then pulled their team even with a 7-6 (4) victory over their Merrimack foes at the second doubles spot. To decide the point, junior Moric Budinszky and senior Ivan Solans Diaz fought off a strong rally from their Warrior adversaries, winning the third doubles match 7-5 to clinch the first point for FDU.
 
Solans Diaz carried his doubles momentum into his singles match at the no. 3 position, winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-3 to make it a 2-0 FDU lead. Pukse, the reigning NEC Player and Rookie of the Month, then extended his winning streak at no. 1 singles to nine straight matches with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Denis Davydov.
 
Gudins then clinched the overall match win for the Knights by capturing a 6-4, 7-5 win at no. 2 singles over Jonathan Garcia. Budinszky also won his singles bout with Pedro De Godoy Mancini in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3, and junior Youssef Sader added FDU's final point of the day with a 1-6, 7-6 (4), 1-0 (10-5) win against Alex Fedorov.
 
The Knights came close to a singles sweep of the Warriors, but junior Maciej Autuch suffered a very close loss at no. 6 singles in three sets, falling 3-6, 6-2, 6-7 (7) on a tiebreaker.
 
FDU continues its NEC road swing on Saturday with a match at defending conference champion Bryant at 12:30 p.m.
 
BOX SCORE
 
DOUBLES
Denis Davydov/Alex Fedorov (MER) def. Niclas Pietsch/Mehdi Dhouib (FDU), 6-2
Teodors Pukse/Andris Gudins (FDU) def. Jonathan Garcia/Alec Mackay Rodriguez (MER), 7-6 (4)
Ivan Solans Diaz/Moric Budinszky (FDU) def. Conrad Koch/Pedro De Godoy Mancini (MER), 7-5
 
SINGLES
Pukse (FDU) def. Davydov (MER), 6-3, 6-3
Gudins (FDU) def. Garcia (MER), 6-4, 7-5
Solans Diaz (FDU) def. Koch (MER), 6-3, 6-3
Youssef Sader (FDU) def. Fedorov (MER), 1-6, 7-6 (4), 1-0 (10-5)
Budinszky (FDU) def. De Godoy Mancini (MER), 6-3, 6-3
Mackay Rodriguez (MER) def. Maciej Autuch (FDU), 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (7)