Despite an all-out effort from the Hornets players, they struggled to contain Gustavus Adolphus and ended up losing in a clean sweep of 9-0 on March 4. As usual, the match started with doubles. The line 1 Fullerton doubles team of Felix Jayamaha from Australia and Sebastian Koster from the Netherlands normally have great success against opponents, but this match was a different story.
Their opponents were Tyler Haddorff and Takura Mhwandagara from Gustavus Adolphus and they made a great dynamic duo. Haddorff’s serves were too hot to handle for the Hornets which earned the Gusties a lot of points. Mhwandagara complimented him with powerful forehands down the alley. For the most part, this set was dominated by the Gusties. Jayamaha had some notable overhead smashes to end a couple of points but was outdone by Haddorff who sent three balls over the fence and into the parking lot.
Jayamaha and Koster lost the set 8-0 despite great effort and hustle.
Micheal Lumang and David Gutierrez of the line 2 Hornets kept the set very competitive and made the Gusties work for their points.
During the beginning of the set, points were getting stretched out as neither team was going down easy. After the fifth game, the score was 3-2 in favor of Gustavus Adolphus. Lumang kept Fullerton in the match with defensive backhand lobs and slice drop shots that their opponent struggled to return.
“I was not holding back on my shots because I knew I had nothing to lose while playing the match,” said Lumang.
After the fifth game, the opposing line 2 team of Noah Hakim and Owen Skanse began to shut the door on Lumang and Gutierrez. The team started to push the net and force the Hornets to beat them with difficult shots.
Fullerton couldn’t contain Skanse and Hakim, dropping the set 8-3. They would go on to lose all three sets of doubles.
Despite the team being down, Assistant Coach Jon Neri remained positive and made sure the team was still in the battle mentally as he was giving them advice on how they could win points.
“For the most part, they kept their composure, which we’ve been working on throughout the season. They definitely matured from the beginning of season up to now, I think a lot of guys played at their highest level,” said Neri.
The singles matches were also controlled by Gustavus Adolphus as they swept 6-0. Fullerton did have some highlights to reflect on despite losing every set.
The line 2 match between Gutierrez and Mhwandagara was back and forth in both sets. In the first set, Gutierrez got off to a 3-2 lead. His serves gave him an advantage over Mhwandagara early in the set. Despite getting off to an early lead, Mhwandagara finished points with explosive forehands down the line. Gutierrez would lose the first set 6-3.
After a talk from Neri in between sets, Gutierrez came out strong going up 2-1. The tide turned fast and Mhwandgara would pick the next two sets off Gutierrez. The team cheered on Gutierrez, as he kept the second set competitive. In the end, Gutierrez lost 6-3.
On a positive note for Gutierrez, he was the only Fullerton player to have a lead in a set.
“I think David performed well. He played his game, got a lot of balls back in and made the guy work for every point,” said Neri.
Lumang of line 3 made a push to get some momentum for Fullerton but was outmatched by his opponent Hakim. Lumang had perfect placements on his drop shots and lobs which won him some points early. In the seventh game, the players had an everlasting rally to end the set which would put Hakim up 5-2 and he won the set 6-2.
Some long points were happening in the second set, but Hakim took all the points. The second set also ended 6-2
The line 1 match between Koster and Haddorff was filled with massive serves and deliberately placed forehands. Both players were serving lights out which gave the player with service an advantage. Haddorff would win the first set 6-2.
Set two is when points started heating up. Koster began to play with passion as he was pumping himself up after points. He would find himself down 3-2 but none of these points were won easily. Koster used his length to his advantage, flushing big serves down to Haddorff’s backhand. They split games 1-1. Now being 4-3, all other matches were over, so all eyes were on Koster. It was back and forth points and the lead was now cut to 5-4. Koster was dominating game 10 as he got up 30-0 in the game. After a battle, Haddorff shut the door with his signature overhead smash.
“It was a tough match. It’s a little bit higher level than what we’re used to, but I think it was a good experience for the guys and a good learning tool for them to find a way to get better,” said Neri.
The Hornets (6-4) will face Orange Coast College at home on Thursday, March 6 at 2 p.m.
*A previous version of this article was corrected after an update to Fullerton’s record and the correct date of when the game took place.*
