DES MOINES, IOWA - Senior Kari Sloboth (Omaha, Neb.) rallied TERRE HAUTE, IND. - Freshman Cesar Bracho (Luque, Paraguay) turned in a memorable performance in his collegiate debut as his victory at the No. 3 singles position propelled the Drake men's tennis team to a 7-0 victory over Indiana State on Saturday (April 4).

The triumph allowed the Bulldogs to even their ledger at 9-9, while in the process pushing their Missouri Valley Conference mark to 2-0. The loss dropped the Sycamores to 2-13 overall, including 0-1 in league play.

"It was a great win today and I thought that Cesar (Bracho) made a tremendous opening statement to his collegiate career," Bulldog head coach Chase Hodges commented. "Our singles play was outstanding and we're looking forward to a tough match on Sunday against Southern Illinois."

Drake established tempo early in the affair by earning victories at the top two doubles positions to assume a lead it didn't relinquish. Clinching the doubles point for the Bulldogs was the tandem of senior Maor Zirkin (Kibutz Hazor, Israel) and Bracho, who dealt Jon Sigurdsson and Josh Smith an 8-5 setback at the top doubles slot.

Senior Ricardo Lau (Tecugigalpa, Honduras) and junior Guilherme Marsiglia (Porto Alegre, Brazil) added a pair of triumphs at the Nos. 5 and 6 positions, respectively, to extend the margin to 3-0. Lau registered a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 6 over Chris Finney, while Marsiglia downed Blake Douglas at No. 5, 6-3, 6-0.

In his first collegiate singles contest, Bracho sealed the triumph for the Bulldogs recording a 6-1, 6-4 decision versus Milos Pavlovic at No. 3.

Rounding out the victory total for Drake was senior Ivan Mendoza (Wellington, New Zealand), Zirkin and sophomore Mauricio Ballivian (Santa Cruz, Bolivia) and the Nos 4, 1 and 2 spots, respectively.

The Bulldogs return to action on Sunday (April 5) as Drake travels to Southern Illinois for an 11:00 a.m. tilt.

DRAKE (9-9, 2-0 MVC) DEF. INDIANA STATE (2-13, 0-1 MVC), 7-0
APRIL 4, 2009
TERRE HAUTE, IND.

SINGLES:
No. 1 Maor Zirkin (DU) def. Josh Smith (INS), 6-0, 6-4
No. 2 Mauricio Ballivian (DU) def. Mpiloenhle Migogo (INS), 6-4, 6-3
No. 3 Cesar Bracho (DU) def. Milos Pavlovic (INS), 6-1, 6-4
No. 4 Ivan Mendoza (DU) def. Jon Sigurdsson (INS), 601, 6-0
No. 5 Guilherme Marsiglia (DU) def. Blake Douglas (INS), 6-3, 6-0
No. 6 Ricardo Lau (DU) def. Chris Finney (INS), 6-0, 6-0
Order of finish (6,5,3,4,1,2)

DOUBLES:
No. 1 Zirkin/Bracho (DU) def. Sigurdsson/Smith (INS), 8-5
No. 2 Ballivian/Mendoza (DU) def. Michael Wenham/Migogo (INS), 8-1
No. 3 Pavlovic/Douglas (INS) def. Lau/Marsiglia (DU), 8-7 (8)
Order of finish (2,1,3)