ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The NM State men's tennis team concluded the Mountain Pacific Invitational 2-1 after defeating San Francisco in a thrilling 4-3 contest at the Linda Estes Tennis Center.
 
The doubles point came down to freshmen Mauri Benitez and Nicholas Springer after NM State and San Francisco took a split on courts Nos. 1 and 2. With the match tied at 5-5, Benitez and Springer came out on top with two-straight points to give the Aggies the crucial doubles point.
 
Singles play went-and-forth between NM State and USF as Enrique Asmar came out roaring in singles play, downing his opponent 6-4, 6-3 at No. 5 singles.
 
The Dons would rally and reeled off three-straight victories to take a 3-2 lead before Benitez put a halt to USF's run. The 6-4 freshman battled Thomas Takemoto at No. 4 singles to win the first set 7-6 (5) before cruising in the second set 6-3.
 
With the match tied at 3-3, Liam Goldberg and San Francisco's Ryan Marker fought tooth-and-nail at No. 2 singles. Goldberg took the first set 6-1 before Marker fired back with a 6-1 victory of his won in the second set. With the match coming down to the third set, the two saw the third and deciding knotted up several times before Goldberg was able to pull away with the 7-5 win.
 
The men will now take a break before opening up Western Athletic Conference play at home, beginning March 24.