MOLINE, Ill. – It didn't seem to bother Augustana Head Coach Jon Miedema's men's tennis team much that the scheduled non-conference match with St. Ambrose had to be moved indoors on Friday, September 28. Instead of being played at the Lower Campus Courts on the Augustana campus the battle with the cross-river rival Fighting Bees went to the Quad City Tennis Club in Moline, Illinois where the Vikings prevailed 8-1.
 
This one wasn't really even close as Augustana only dropped 11 sets in singles and only twice did St. Ambrose win as many as three sets in a match.
 
The Vikings took a 2-1 lead after doubles as senior Jack Morkin (University HS, Bloomington, Ill.) and freshman Kyle Boudreau (Mundelein HS, Mundelein, Ill.) defeated Dan Daluga and Jake Temple 8-2 at number one. The number three team of senior Alex Riddle (York HS, Elmhurst, Ill.) and freshman Justin Cassens (Emerald Ridge HS, Puyallup, Wash.) defeated Daniel Rohlf and Matt Zuccato 8-1.
 
St. Ambrose scored its lone point of the match at number two doubles where Bradley Wheeler and Michael Allee, the son of former Augustana Head Coach Bill Allee, defeated junior Scott Daluga (Libertyville HS, Libertyville, Ill.) and freshman Joao Magalhaes (Colegio Cruzeiro, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil) in a tight 8-6 battle.
 
Morkin beat Wheeler 6-1; 6-0 at number one singles and Boudreau took care of Temple 6-2; 6-0 at number two. Scott Daluga blanked Allee 6-0; 6-0 at number three and Magalhaes defeated Rohlf 6-1; 6-3 at number four. Riddle beat Dan Daluga 6-3; 6-0 at number five. Junior Ryan Sullivan (The Gow School, Winnetka, Ill.) defeated Matt Zuccato 6-1; 6-0 at number six.
 
This was the first dual match of the season for both teams. Augustana competed in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin Invitational on September 16 in Decatur, Illinois and the Vikings won seven of the nine flights contested. This weekend a contingent of Miedema's team is playing at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's (ITA) Midwest Regional in St. Louis, Missouri. The next competition for Augustana after this weekend will be on January 26 with dual meets against Wabash and Hope in Crawfordsville, Indiana.