Posted: Tuesday, February 23, 2010 10:14 pm

Middle Tennessee defeated Tennessee Tech 6-1 in its second match of the day late Tuesday afternoon.

Like it did in the 5-2 win over Brown, Middle Tennessee won the doubles point to begin play. Junior John Peers and senior Victor Melo defeated Josh Girling and Nicholas Stafford 8-3.

In No. 2 doubles, Oscar Pachon and Arturo Santa Ruize defeated freshman Shaun Waters and sophomore Richard Cowden 8-2.

With the doubles point on the line, junior Kyle Wishing and sophomore Matthew Langley battled against Alex Chen and Lloyd Harris taking the win 8-6 and giving the Blue Raiders a 1-0 lead.

“I am very excited about the way we competed and played today. Our tough schedule certainly helped us in both matches today and will continue to help us down the road,” head coach David McNamara said. “We had some guys who were struggling and needed wins to gain confidence and they got them. It is looking very good for us down the stretch and I hope we can use the momentum from today on Sunday and the rest of the season.”

In singles action, Tennessee Tech evened the score at 1 but that was the only point it would win in the match.

Peers defeated Chen 6-2, 6-2 while Melo won his match 7-5, 6-3 over Girling to put Middle Tennessee up 3-1.

Cowden pulled out a two-set battle 7-5, 7-5 over Justin Kirstein to seal the win for the Blue Raiders.

Waters and Langley rounded out play for the Blue Raiders as each recorded a win. Waters defeated Pachon 6-2, 7-6 (5) while Langley won his match 6-7 (4), 6-4, 10-4 over Harris.

The Blue Raiders will have the rest of the week off to prepare for Vanderbilt. Middle Tennessee and Vanderbilt are set to play at 12 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27 in Nashville.
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Raider tennis team wins home opener

Middle Tennessee opened the 2010 home season on a high note defeating Brown 5-2 on Tuesday morning.

The Blue Raiders took an early 1-0 lead after the doubles matches and never looked back. Sophomore Richard Cowden and freshman Shaun Waters defeated Tom Deighton and Mike Hill 8-5 to open play.

Juniors John Peers and Kyle Wishing teamed up against Nathaniel Gorham and Kendrick Au winning 8-5 to clinch the point. Senior Victor Melo and sophomore Matthew Langley wrapped up doubles action with their 8-5 win over Timmy Klanke and Charlie Posner.

Peers started singles play on the right note as he defeated Gorham 7-6 (5), 6-1. Then Melo put the Blue Raiders up 3-0 in the match with his 6-1, 6-4 win over Au.

Brown's Hill defeated McCann 7-5, 6-1 to close the gap, 3-1. Cowden sealed the win for Middle Tennessee with his three-set win 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 over Klanke.

Langley padded the score with his 6-2, 6-2 win over Posner.
•••
Bulle share medalist honors at Mobile Bay

MOBILE, Ala. - On a difficult scoring day, Middle Tennessee shot a final round 298 to finish fifth at the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate with a 54-hole score of 885. The first tournament of the spring season was played on the par 72 Magnolia Grove Crossings Golf Course (7,212 yards).

The tournament was won by Ole Miss with an 877 followed by Illinois State, Louisville, Vanderbilt, and Middle Tennessee.

"It was a good start to the spring season," said Head Coach Whit Turnbow. "We were not very sharp but that is to be expected this time of year. We have a week to work and do some qualifying, then we will be ready to go to South Florida."

A highlight for the Blue Raiders was the play of senior Kent Bulle who earned medalist honors for the fourth time in his career. Bulle carded a three-round score of 213 to share medalist honors with South Alabama's Jack Hiluta.

Bulle owned the par 5s this week with seven birdies but it was the par 5 sixth hole that allowed Hiluta to join him at the top of the leaderboard. Bulle double bogeyed the hole but wound up the tournament with 14 birdies.

Fellow senior Craig Smith tied for 18th overall with a 221 total, while Brad Simons tied for 35th with a 225.

Hunter Green had his best round of the tournament on Tuesday with a 74 to move up to 41st with a 226.

Dane Voss, playing in his first collegiate tournament, tied for 89th with a 235.

"Kent Bulle was good all week and Craig Smith was very solid which is what I expect from seniors," added Turnbow. "Also, I am very proud of Dane Voss because he played his heart out for us."

The Blue Raiders will step back into action on March 5 at the USF Invitational.

TEAM SCORES
1 Mississippi, U. of +13 F +13 291 285 301 877
2 Illinois State U. +14 F +4 293 293 292 878
3 Louisville, U. of +15 F +6 299 286 294 879
4 Vanderbilt +18 F +9 290 295 297 882
5 Middle Tennessee +21 F +10 293 294 298 885
T6 South Alabama, U. of +22 F +10 295 293 298 886
T6 Mississippi St. U. +22 F +8 297 293 296 886
8 Memphis, U. of +23 F +17 291 291 305 887
9 Iowa State Univ. +24 F +15 296 289 303 888
10 Arkansas State U. +32 F +7 305 296 295 896
11 Kentucky, U. of +37 F +9 307 297 297 901
12 Akron, U. of +43 F +21 309 289 309 907
T13 Jacksonville Univ. +44 F +14 310 296 302 908
T13 Kennesaw St. Univ. +44 F +17 300 303 305 908
15 Toledo +46 F +20 304 298 308 910
16 Southern Mississippi +48 F +17 306 301 305 912
17 So. Florida, U. of +56 F +24 305 303 312 920
18 Belmont University +58 F +25 310 299 313 922

MT SCORES
T1 Kent Bulle -3 F 67 72 74 213
T18 Craig Smith +5 F 73 74 74 221
T35 Brad Simons +9 F 76 73 76 225
T41 Hunter Green +10 F 77 75 74 226
T89 Dane Voss +19 F 83 75 77 235
•••

Women's golf sixth at Kiawah Island

Kiawah Island, S.C. - The Middle Tennessee women's golf program put together a great third round on the way to their third-best tournament score in history. The Blue Raiders shot a 296 on Tuesday to finish tied for sixth (out of 33) with an 898 at the Kiawah Island Intercollegiate.

"Everyone stepped up and contributed for the finish," said Coach Chris Adams. "I am very proud of how this young squad played in our first spring tournament, especially with the talent at this event. Our confidence is up, and we plan to carry it on to the next event."

Morgan Hale turned in another record day on the course, tying her career low round with a 2-under 70, which was set on Monday. Overall, the junior turned in the third-best three-round score in Blue Raider history with a 1-under 215. She earned a third place finish in the tournament, two strokes off the lead.

Freshmen Olivia Love and Stephanie Smith also turned in exceptional performances. Love carded a third-round 73 to finish with a 10-over 226, and Smith ended the event with a 12-over 228.

Clara Leathers shot a 77 on the day to finish with a 231, her best three-round score since her sophomore season. Ashley Haggard rebounded from a tough second round to shoot a 76 Tuesday, her best round of the young spring season.

Middle Tennessee will continue their spring season in March at the Administaff Lady Jaguar Intercollegiate in Augusta, Ga. The two-round event will tee off on March 7 and conclude the following day.

TEAM SCORES
1. Miami, 892 (+28)
2. Minnesota, 893 (+29)
3. Augusta State, 895 (+31)
T4. Oral Roberts, 897 (+33)
T4. East Carolina, 897 (+33)
T6. Middle Tennessee State, 898 (+34)
T6. East Tennessee State, 898 (+34)
T6. Campbell, 898 (+34)
9. College of Charleston, 902 (+38)
10. Fla. International, 903 (+39)

MT SCORES
T3. Morgan Hale, 215 (-1)
T25. Olivia Love, 226 (+10)
T35. Stephanie Smith, 228 (+12)
T57. Clara Leathers, 231 (+15)
T105. Ashley Haggard, 240 (+24)