Virginia Tech lost 5-1 to No. 50 Florida State in a men’s tennis match on March 29, despite an early lead from doubles play.
The result matters as it reflects the Hokies’ ability to compete against ranked opponents and highlights strong performances in doubles, even as singles matches proved more challenging.
Virginia Tech started the match by securing the doubles point. Blake Hilsen and Eyal Shumilov defeated the No. 15-ranked pair of Erik Schiessl and Luis Felipe Miguel with a score of 6-2. Frank Thompson and Drew Fishback followed up with a close 7-5 win to clinch the opening point for the Hokies.
In singles play, Florida State gained momentum and moved ahead in overall points. Julian Lozano narrowly lost his match, falling 5-7, 4-6. Ilyas Fahim was defeated by No. 121 Luis Felipe Miguel in two sets (2-6, 6-7), while Drew Fishback held a slight lead over No. 124 Azariah Rusher when their match was stopped before completion.
Other results included Eyal Shumilov losing to No. 92 Erik Schiessl (2-6, 4-6), Blake Hilsen falling to Justin Lyons (1-6, 2-6), and Frank Thompson being defeated by Gabor Hornung (4-6, 0-6). In doubles action besides the victories for Virginia Tech pairs, Ilyas Fahim and Patrik Jurina were beaten by Justin Lyons and Mohammad Alkotop (1-6).
Looking ahead, Virginia Tech will return home for its next match against Louisville on Friday, April 3 at Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center.
