Senior Joe Bove was 4-0 on the day as the Foresters edged out Milwaukee School of Engineering 5-4 and defeated Carroll University 8-1 at the Racquet Club of Lake Bluff on Saturday.
Bove and sophomore Aidan Burke started the match against MSOE with an 8-5 victory at #2 doubles. Forester freshmen Carson Chen and Mawande Mayiga doubled up their opponents 8-4 at #3 and the home team led 2-1 going into singles play.
After the Raiders earned the point at #4 singles, sophomore Brant Christensen and Bove finished off matches that required a third set super tiebreaker. Christensen came out on top of a 6-1, 3-6, (10-8) decision at #4 and Bove came from behind to prevail 1-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-6) at #3. A victory for the visitors at #1 pulled them to within one at 4-3 but Matthew Pawlowski's convincing 6-0, 6-1 win at #6 clinched the match for the Foresters.
Lake Forest's second match of the day began the same way as the first, with victories in two of three doubles contests. Bove and Burke blanked their counterparts 8-0 at #2 and the duo of Chen and Pawlowski did the same at #3.
Christensen took both sets 6-1 at #4 and Pawlowski rolled to a 6-1, 6-0 win at #5. The clinching point was provided by a 6-4, 6-4 triumph by Burke at #2 and senior Matt Kacyn, after dropping the first set 6-2, took the second 7-5 before his opponent at the top of the lineup was forced to retire. Chen won 6-2, 6-4 at #6 and Bove closed out the night with a hard-fought 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), (10-6) victory at #3.
The Foresters are now 2-2 on the young season. MSOE defeated Carroll 8-1 in between Lake Forest's victories to improve to 2-4 and the Pioneers fell to 0-5.
Lake Forest will play two more matches next Sunday, taking on host Carthage College at 9:00 a.m. and Edgewood College at noon at the Life Sport Athletic Club in Racine, Wisconsin.
