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ALPHARETTA, GA – The Kennesaw State men's tennis team opened the 2014 season in inspiring fashion Sunday as first-year head coach Eduardo Rincon made his Owls dual-match coaching debut.  Although KSU fell 4-3 to Florida Atlantic at the Manor Golf & Country Club in Alpharetta, the performance provides the Owls with a foundation to build upon.
 
"Florida Atlantic is a very disciplined team and very well coached," Rincon said. "It was an excellent experience for us, for our players to realize that we're not that far off, that we have to work just a little bit harder to take care of the little details better and more often.
 
"I think once we can create a culture that is detail-oriented, we're going to do great," Rincon added. "It was a heartbreaker. It's tough. I don't like losing, but the guys competed hard, and represented Kennesaw State the right way."
 
Florida Atlantic (2-2) claimed two of the three doubles matches to claim the all-important doubles point, posting wins at No. 1 and No. 2. The duo of Alexander Pena and Jake Bouchillon posted a 6-2 win at No. 3 doubles, setting up the No. 2 doubles match to decide the doubles point.
 
Florida Atlantic's Richard Meade and Stefan Burnett posted a 6-4 win over David Durham and Jorge Wilton to give FAU the point and carry momentum into singles play.
 
The decisive singles contest came at No. 1 singles where KSU's Simon Pritchard extended Andre Morin-Kougocheff to three sets. After falling 6-4 in the first set, Pritchard evened the contest with a 6-5 (6) second-set win before Morin-Kougocheff came back to record 6-2 third-set victory and capture the match.
 
Kennesaw State's singles victories came from Wilton, who posted a 6-2, 6-2 win over Meade at No. 3 singles, while Bouchillon recorded a 6-5(4)victory over Gerald Nickerson and Durham defeated  Sean Bacha, 6-4, 6-2, at No. 6 singles.
 
Kennesaw State is next in action this weekend when it travels to Greenville, N.C. The Owls will face Longwood on Saturday (Jan. 25) at 11 a.m. (ET) and at East Carolina on Sunday (Jan. 26) at 11 a.m.
 
NCAA Division I Men's Tennis
January 19, 2014
Florida Atlantic at Kennesaw State
Manor Golf & Country Club; Alpharetta, Ga.
 
Florida Atlantic 4, Kennesaw State 3
 
Doubles
No. 1 Andre Morin-Kougocheff/Will Neuner (FAU) def. Simon Pritchard/Louis Theodore (KSU); 6-4
No. 2 Richard Meade/Stefan Burnett (FAU) def. David Durham/Jorge Wilton (KSU); 6-4
No. 3 Alex Pena/Jake Bouchillon (KSU) def. Robert Dubuque/Sean Bacha (FAU); 6-2
 
Singles
No. 1 Andre Morin-Kougocheff (FAU) def. Simon Pritchard (KSU); 6-4, 5-6 (6), 6-2
No. 2 Will Neuner (FAU) def. Louis Theodor (KSU); 6-2, 6-5 (4)
No. 3. Jorge Wilton (KSU) def. Richard Meade (FAU); 6-2, 6-2
No. 4. Robert Dubuque (FAU) def. Alex Pena (KSU); 6-1, 6-1
No. 5. Jake Bouchillon (KSU) def. Gerald Nickerson (FAU); 6-5 (4), 6-2
No. 6. David Durham (KSU) vs. Sean Bacha (FAU); 6-4, 6-2
 
Order of Finish: Doubles: No. 3, No. 1, No. 2 ; Singles: No. 4, No. 3, No. 2, No. 1, No. 5, No. 6
Records: Kennesaw State (0-1), Florida Atlantic (2-2)

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