KISSIMMEE, Fla. / ORLANDO, Fla. — Davenport men's tennis picked up a pair of hard-fought, comeback 4-3 victories on March 5, edging Judson (Ill.) in Kissimmee before rallying for another narrow win against Eckerd at the USTA National Campus in Orlando. The Panthers improved their record to 7-8 on the season after sweeping the day's matches.

Match 1: Davenport 4, Judson 3
Davenport opened the day with a 1-0 deficit in doubles play, falling in two of the three flights. The duo of Brayden Kopp and Florian Koppitsch secured a 6-2 win at No. 1 doubles for Judson over Reuben Bakker and Jan Stolin, while Adrian Constantin and Bennet Dozeman followed with a 6-4 victory at No. 2 for the Panthers. At the third position, Cesar Otondo Villafan and Julius Fortun completed the point with a 6-4 win to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead entering singles competition.

In singles play, Davenport needed four wins to clinch the match. Brayden Kopp delivered at the top spot for Judson, taking the first set 6-3 before his opponent retired early in the second set. Niel Hentrich secured a win at No. 6 over Kameron Nichols for the Panthers, 6-2, 6-1. The Panthers rallied with wins at No. 2-5. Daniel Calver needed extra sets but won 6-1, 5-7, 10-4. Rudiger Dusselberg at No. 3 cruised to a 6-4, 6-3 triumph over Josh Bavich. Bakker at No. 4 and Dozeman at No. 5 finished it off in three sets. Bakker dropped the first set before coming back, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3, while Dozeman won 7-5, 3-6, 10-6.

Match 2: Davenport 4, Eckerd 3
The Panthers' second match of the day proved just as tight. Eckerd took the doubles point after winning two of the three matches, though Reuben Bakker and Jan Stolin earned a convincing 6-1 win at No. 2 doubles to keep Davenport within striking distance.

It was the same script as the morning as DU trailed 3-0 after falling at No. 2 and No. 3 singles. Stolin got a point at No. 1 with a 7-6, 6-4 victory over Batu Ataseven. Jaden Bender at No. 4 was next with a 7-6, 6-1 win over Marshall Hulett. Bakker at No. 6 tied the match winning 5-7, 6-1, 10-7 over Adrian Gheorghe. The clincher at No. 5 singles was Dusselberg in three sets. He won the first set 6-4 and was blanked 6-0 in the second set. He found the fortitude to pull out a 11-9 super tiebreaker over Konrad Fischer.

The Panthers will get a much-deserved rest and will be back on the courts on Friday, Mar. 11 in their GLIAC opener against Purdue Northwest.