WISE, Va. – UVa-Wise men's tennis dropped a 8-1 decision to West Virginia Wesleyan Saturday afternoon in the Cavaliers' (3-5, 0-1 MEC) home and Mountain East Conference opener.
 
Ranked sixth in the most recent Intercollegiate Tennis Association's (ITA) Atlantic Region poll, the Bobcats (7-1, 1-0 MEC) swept all six singles matches in straight sets to earn the win over the Cavs.
 
UVa-Wise played solid doubles and came away with a win at the top spot when the duo of senior Vladyslav Akimenko (Donetsk, Ukraine) and sophomore Andrii Rutnytskyi (Odessa, Ukraine) took down the Bobcats' Nathan Sabate and Ferran Berga, 8-5. At No. 3 doubles, sophomore Christopher Armistead (Virginia Beach, Va.) and Blake Pientka (Wise, Va.) fought hard but came up short against West Virginia Wesleyan's tandem of Andre Fernandes and Jacobo Rendon (8-5).
 
Ramon Rodriguez and Pedro Nassar of West Virginia Wesleyan were too much for senior Oleg Kopychenko (Simferopol, Ukraine) and sophomore Viktor Tunnikov (Kharkiv, Ukraine), defeating the pair 8-3 at No. 2 doubles.
 
Akimenko, Rutnytskyi and Kopychenko each played competitive singles matches for the Cavs as Kopychenko won three games in each set at No. 3 singles against the Bobcats' Rodriguez. Sabate of West Virginia Wesleyan handed Akimenko a 6-2, 6-3 loss at the top spot in the longest singles match of the day, while at No. 2 singles it was Rendon of West Virginia Wesleyan who came out on the winning end of a 6-2, 6-3 match against Rutnytskyi.
 
Armistead battled West Virginia Wesleyan's Anthony Rames and played a close second set but came out on the losing end of a 6-1, 6-4 match at the sixth spot.
 
Tunnikov and Pientka were both defeated 6-0, 6-0 at No. 4 and No. 5 singles, respectively, by the Bobcats' Berga and Nassar.
 
The Cavs will remain at home and play their second match of the weekend tomorrow when UVa-Wise battles NCAA Division III Berea College (Ky.) in a non-conference match at 2 p.m.
 
Visit uvawisecavs.com for all Cavalier men's tennis news, statistics, complete schedule and more.
 
Full Match Results
West Virginia Wesleyan 8, UVa-Wise 1
 
Singles
1. Nathan Sabate (WVW) def. Vladyslav Akimenko (WISE) 6-2, 6-3
2. Jacobo Rendon (WVW) def. Andrii Rutnytskyi (WISE) 6-2, 6-3
3. Ramon Rodriguez (WVW) def. Oleg Kopychenko (WISE) 6-3, 6-3
4. Ferran Berga (WVW) def. Viktor Tunnikov (WISE) 6-0, 6-0
5. Pedro Nassar (WVW) def. Blake Pientka (WISE) 6-0, 6-0
6. Anthony Rames (WVW) def. C. Armistead (WISE) 6-1, 6-4
 
Doubles
1. Vladyslav Akimenko/Andrii Rutnytskyi (WISE) def. Nathan Sabate/Ferran Berga (WVW) 8-5
2. Ramon Rodriguez/Pedro Nassar (WVW) def. Oleg Kopychenko/Viktor Tunnikov (WISE) 8-3
3. Andre Fernandes/Jacobo Rendon (WVW) def. C. Armistead/Blake Pientka (WISE) 8-5